Victim
by T.C.Rose
Summary: IT'S FINALLY BACK! Bigger, Cleaner and Better than ever! Read and Review, I want all my reviews back! Tifa has disappeared, will Cloud get to her in time to save her body...and her life? Ch.4 Can Avalanche handle it?
1. His Return

Disclaimer: I do NOT own any final fantasy characters nor am I affiliated with Square Soft in any way  
NOTE TO READERS: This story has been cleaned up for this website. For those of you who want an original copy without the censorship can email me and I will send you the original in all its glory. For those of you who wanted me to publish this story, visit my website to see and ORIGINAL version of this story, my own plot, my own characters and get a glimpse of the book before I publish it!

- - - - -

It was in her eyes. It was something in her chocolate-covered cherry eyes that made all of his fears, all of his anxiety, all of his pain and any other emotion that could overwhelm him just melt away with one gaze from her lovingly optimistic eyes. She was everything to him, had always had been, he just needed to realize that.

Of course he had left her for several months after they had defeated Meteor and the planet was saved. He had needed to find himself to realize that what he really needed had been right there in front of him the entire time.

Fate was funny in mystical ways. It had brought them together and then placed a roadblock in their path, a test of what their love could survive. Something to decide whether his love for her could fade. The light had wavered, yes, and perhaps if Aeris would not have died things would have turned out differently but, as fate would have it, she did and thusly Cloud had passed his test.

He had realized what he needed during his journey of discovery, during a battle that had left him wounded. To get there he had ridden chocobo, bored out of his skull because he had no one to talk to, no one to let him know that everything would be alright. He fought this monster and discovered what was missing from his life. With the planet saved and him alone, he had no one and nothing to protect. He had failed as a bodyguard, failed as a leader and most importantly; failed as a friend. He wanted someone to protect, someone to need him when a battle got tough, someone who would protect him in those rare instances that he would be injured and left vulnerable. He wanted that someone to stand over him as he lay hurt, and kill that monster in his name, someone tough enough to look after him, yet weak enough to need him to hold her up.

He remembered Tifa. How she had fought for him and with him during their quest. How she had been there for him when Aeris died and how her cheerful optimism had helped him through the toughest of times.

Then he returned to her. He discontinued his journey and promptly returned to the home in Kalm where she had settled. He had stayed with her for a while after the Highwind had dropped them off. Neither one wanted to reside in the villa purchased at Costa Del Sol because it reminded them too much of hard times. Everyone else had returned to their respective homes. So Cloud and Tifa purchased a cottage at Kalm and turned the bottom floor into a new bar. Cloud tried to help as best he could but it was clear to everyone who frequented the bar that Tifa held the place together. Cloud stayed in the background, most useful for ordering supplies and helping pay the bills with his job of teaching sword techniques to eager learners.

It was late in the afternoon when he finally reached the front door of the Eighth Heaven Bar. He removed his key from his pants pocket, shrugged his shoulders and took a deep breath before slowly turning the knob to enter as quietly as possible. He wanted to surprise her but in his months of absence had forgotten about the bells hanging in the doorway to alert a customer's entrance. His spiky hair and muscular silhouette through the window probably didn't help as well.

The lights were on and the bar was booming this Saturday night. Tifa stood in her customary spot behind the bar, pretending to laugh with the bar patrons as they joked and wiping the inside of a glass with a damp rag. There was no doubt that she was one of the most gorgeous women that the patrons had ever seen, whether in a magazine or in real life. Heads turned when she walked by, and Cloud could see that even now the customer's, some he recognized as locals from back in the days that he used to help out around the bar, would whisper about her behind her back, telling dirty jokes or making degrading comments. As much as he wanted to, Cloud knew that he could not start a fight with them over it, though he had wanted to many times.

Tifa turned at the sound of the chimes and, upon seeing who had entered, dropped the glass, the broken shards scattered about the floor just as easily as the shards of her life up until this point. Everyone in the bar turned to look at her with gaping mouths wide open. A cigarette fell from a patron's mouth into a conveniently placed ashtray as he looked at her, astonished. Cloud could see her face turn red as she kneeled down to pick up the pieces. A few patrons bent over to help her and took the tray from her, one placing a hand on her shoulder to ask if she was all right. After receiving a reassuring nod from Tifa, he went back to his table.

Cloud stood poised in the doorway, wanting to run to her, to embrace her and feel her soft skin pressed against his own. He wanted to kiss her, and not stop until all his saliva was dried up. Instead he just stood there, motionless, not sure what to do or how to tell her about his epiphany. And now a feeling of guilt washed over him as he let slip a four-letter word that was not so pleasing. Embarrassing her in front of her patrons had to be one of the worst things he could have done to her, maybe not as terrible as disappearing and leaving behind a devastating note, but still pretty bad. He thought how bad it was that he finally realizes that he always loved her and the first thing he does once he finds her is humiliate her.

She made the first move, running over to him and throwing her arms about his neck, pressing her moist face against his strong chest for comfort. She cried and muttered something unintelligible; something like "you're back" softly into his chest, then pulled away, her cheeks crimson with embarrassment. She bowed her head and waved for him to have a seat at the bar, then tried to return to work as usual, trying with all her might to hide the euphoria that was overwhelming her body.

After the bar had closed and Tifa had cleaned all the tables she walked behind the bar to make Cloud a drink. He had sat on a stool to be close to her but they didn't really talk because she had a lot of customers to deal with. He couldn't even look at her beauty, trying to figure out in his mind what he would say to her and how he would explain his absence. He didn't know how he could convince her how he felt. He had been gone so long, and before that he had been so distant since Aeris died and since he had met her. He didn't know if she would believe him, but the look on her face told him that she had already forgiven him.

He had waited patiently as always for her to finish up for the night but secretly he couldn't wait. After she placed his glass in front of him she leaned over the bar across from him, smiling and propping her hands up on her fists.

"So you decided to come home, huh?" She asked with a grin on her face. She had been waiting for months to say that and had even practiced saying it in front of a mirror to get the cadence just right. Silly, she had thought to herself, but this is how Cloud made her feel and she would do anything for him. "Did you find yourself?" She added as he took a sip from his drink. He nodded and looked at her through the bottom of his glass, her reflection distorted but nonetheless beautiful.

"As a matter of fact I did." He replied, reaching for her hands and clasping them in his own, the feel of her silky skin against his own made his heart flip flop.

He gazed lovingly into her wondrous eyes and smiled, making her blush. She turned her face from his in embarrassment but he brought one hand around the back of her head and pulled her lips to his. She was so surprised by his action that she forgot for a second how to kiss, but regained her knowledge and let her tongue become intertwined with his.

It seemed like hours, though it was only a few minutes, that they remained there, each leaning across the bar to reach the other. So close yet so far away they seemed and she wrapped her arms about his neck while he traced the features of her face with his remaining arm. They kissed feverishly, each one's emotions for the other heating up in the moment.

Cloud couldn't wait any longer. He had known this woman for twenty years, nearly his whole life save one year, and never in that time had they expressed their love for each other physically. Tonight, he thought to himself, would change all that. He pulled himself away from her and jumped over the bar, bringing her to the ground beneath him. They landed with a thud and she gasped in surprise. Never in her life had she expected him to do anything so bold with her. He kissed her more intensely, while bringing one hand to rest about her waist, and then slowly, with nervousness and anxiety in his intentions he began to raise his hand beneath her shirt.

He began to softly kiss her face, then worked down to her neck, nipping softly and kissing hard, something he had wanted to do for a long time. He had wanted to feel his lips against hers, and then against her skin. He brought both his hands down to her waist and began to lift her shirt. She clasped his hands with hers to stay his action.

With the fear of ruining the moment in her heart, she sat up and backed away from him a little. He looked at her, hurt and confused, and asked, "What's wrong?" The girl looked down at her chest, and his gaze easily followed, as he supported himself on his hands, one on each side of her thighs.

"It's…It's Sephiroth's scar…it's ugly." She said sheepishly and looked away from his stare. He sat back with her between his legs and stretched to embrace her.

"Teef, it's not like I haven't seen it before!" He said, trying to comfort her.

He knew how she felt about the scar that ran from her left should to below her right breast. She looked at him, both angered and embarrassed, not remembering that he had seen her breasts on that day. She turned away from him, flustered, and breathed heavily.

"And how did you see it?" She enquired.

He laughed and smiled, then brought his lips to hers briefl, to reassure her, knowing how embarrassed she could get over such matters. She had always been a very conserved girl, though her look made people think otherwise, her perfect figure and large bosom seemed to indicated that she was immoral, but she was in fact the complete opposite. 

"Did you forget that I was there that day?" He knew he didn't need to finish saying how he had seen Sephiroth cut her, or how the whole town and seen her chest while trying to save her.

'No', he thought to himself, 'I'll save her the embarrassment.' She turned her face from him again, tears streaming down her cheeks as she remembered that day; the day her father died and she nearly lost her life. Cloud, or rather Zack, had saved her, though now she wished that only Cloud had been there, been the only one to see her bare chest. Though nothing would have made the experience any easier.

She smiled and looked at him as he wiped the tears from her eyes. He hugged her close and whispered softly into her ear, "Everything is alright now, I'm here." She pulled back and smiled wider than ever, for the first time in her life, she was sure that Cloud Strife loved her. She would always have an undermining fear that he still had feelings for Aeris, but she could not let herself get jealous because Aeris was dead, and Cloud was here, with her now. Aeris had been her best friend, and she was not happy for her death, but she knew that letting go of Aeris meant letting Cloud in.

She wrapped her arms around him and met his lips with her, thrusting her tongue lovingly into his mouth while his hands once again began to lift her shirt, this time without stopping.

She moaned in approval and kissed the top of his head feverishly. They remained in that state, on the floor behind the bar for quite sometime, until Cloud, most ungracefully, lost his balance and hit his head against the solid wood frame. Tifa laughed and clutched his head to her chest, stroking his hair and asking if he was fine.

"I think it's time we moved to a bigger space." He said, rubbing the back of his head.

He stood up; hitting his head on the counter as he did so, uttered some obscenities then outstretched an arm for her to take. She obliged and jumped up in excitement for this was the night she had dreamed about for years. She had always waited for an experience like this; unable to find someone she felt she could trust like Cliff. Her friends were always teasing her about it as well, telling her their sexual stories and asking what she was waiting for. 

Cloud led her into the upstairs bedroom, clutching her to him and kissing her the whole way up the stairs, twisting and bumping into walls as they went. They slammed through the bedroom door nearly toppling over each other until they reached the bed. Cloud fell on top of Tifa as their flesh met. He began to kiss her more rapidly, working his way down her neck and to her chest. It felt good just to have her in his arms, feeling her warm skin against his own.

- - - - -

The sun rose into the sky causing a shower of light to flood into the room where Cloud and Tifa slept. He had his right arm wrapped beneath her and resting on her shoulder. Tifa had her right arm stretched across his chest where her head rest. The covers were pulled up loosely to cover her bare skin, while they slipped down to below Cloud's belly. He lay awake with the sun in his eyes as his lady slept beside him. He reflected on the previous night, wanting to relive every euphoric moment. He closed his eyes and began to sweat. He rolled over and kissed her forehead, wrapping his other arm around her and drawing her towards him.

She stirred and blinked her eyes, gazing into his eyes lovingly and stretching her arms above her head. He smiled and rolled on top of her.

"Cloud," she said, "it's 11 a.m. we can't have a repeat of last night or I won't be able to open the bar on time." She mused. He smiled and kissed her softly in response.

"It's Sunday darling," Cloud informed her with a smile.

She kissed him rather ferociously and jumped on top of him. She straddled him and cupped his face in her hands, kissing him over and over, forgetting that she was nude. She realized her disadvantage and quickly pulled the sheet up to her chin. Cloud chuckled and tried to pull the sheet from her.

"It's not like I haven't seen you before, Teef." He mused with a raised eyebrow. She smiled and relaxed, letting the sheet fall to her hips as he wrapped his arms around her waist and began to tickle her.

She laughed out loud and fell to her back bringing her knees to her chin, trying to block his attack. She reached for his waist and began to counter. They rolled in the sheets together for hours until the sun set, then fell asleep in each other's arms again, just as the night before.


	2. Taken

On Monday morning Tifa opened the bar as usual and tried to suppress the happiness that was welling up inside her and making her hot and moist. She wished she could close the bar to indulge Cloud but she knew she couldn't, he didn't work and she needed to pay the bills. She didn't mind supporting them both since Cloud still had tons of gil remaining from their travels.

She was much more cheerful this morning, strutting around the bar and talking to patrons like they were old friends. The aura inside the bar remained bright and sunny even though a thick, dark overcast hung over the city like an omniscient presence. As noon passed the heavens opened up and a torrent of rain began to flood the town. The streets cleared, many people taking refuge in the nearby stores, several even coming into the Eighth Heaven Bar.

Inside the bar remained delightful; an air of tranquility hovered over the patrons and some even began to dance. Cloud, on a number of occasions, circled behind the bar where Tifa stood making drinks to pinch he buttocks. Even after several pinches she still jumped and squealed, then turned to glare at him as he stared at her with his eyes to the sky and an innocent smile on his face. She would promptly return to her work knowing she could not scold him with such an adorable face.

- - - - -

And so it was late one evening, not a trace of fear hung in the air and only the nightingales made any sound. Cloud walked home from the grocery store at a brisk pace, nearly skipping in his overjoyed fate. Tonight he and Tifa would make love together and he couldn't get home fast enough. He loved her dearly and the time he spent with her since his return was unquestionably the happiest week of his life. He could only hope that more like it would follow.

His joy was smashed into oblivion when a sudden chill ran down his spine as he neared his home in Kalm Town. His turmoil began when he noticed the front door was open and swinging in the wind, as a breeze blew by, its icy claws grasping at him like death. The lights were off, something Tifa would never do if he were out, nor would she ever leave the door open like that.

He rushed into the bar and flipped the light switch. The old bulb flickered on with a slight buzzing sound. He heard the chime of the overhead bells but nothing else. He felt no sign of life and checked behind the bar, discovering only a few smashed glasses lying in pieces on the floor. He ran up the stairs and into the bedroom, finding only an open window and curtains blowing in the cold wind. The bed was unmade as if someone had been laying in it, but nothing seemed to be missing. Nothing, except for Tifa.

"Tifa!" He called frantically, yet in the pit of his stomach he knew she was not there.

He ran through the remaining upstairs rooms, but found them, not to his surprise, to be empty as well. He pieced together the evidence and believed that an intruder had come through the upstairs bedroom window, taken Tifa out of bed while she lay waiting for him, dragged her downstairs as she fought him off, crashed into the bar wall knocking over some glasses, then ran out the door and into the night.

Cloud noticed some traces of blood on the headboard, indicating that maybe Tifa had been injured, and that was why she was unable to escape. He sat down on one of the stairs and placed his face into his hands and for the first time in years, cried his eyes out. He couldn't believe that he had finally found his happiness in life, and now, she was gone. He couldn't imagine how it could have happened, or why it happened. He was here, and he was supposed to be able to take care of her. It didn't seem possible that she would disappear just as he came home to her.

- - - - -

Cloud awoke uncomfortably to find himself on the hardwood floor of the bar. His head throbbed from a headache and he had a pain in his spine as well. He was drenched with sweat from his fitful slumber and took a shower to wash away his pain.

He had to find her, he had wanted to protect her, and again, he failed. He didn't know where she was or who had taken her, nor did he have any clues as to whom the perpetrator could be. He didn't know what was happening to her, whether she was being tortured or even if she was… He couldn't finish his thought though it did hang in the back of his mind. He dressed and called the police.

"9-1-1 what's the problem?" The operator asked monotonously.

Cloud didn't know what to say, he wished he had called the night before but he didn't think about it, he just cried himself to sleep…as he had done when he was a child. He could have killed himself for falling into his old ways, if only for one night, he needed to be strong, now more than ever, for Tifa.

He hesitated before saying, "My girlfriend…she…last night I came home…she's gone…the window and door…they were open…that's not like her…I think…" his voice trailed off. He didn't want to say it; he thought that maybe if he didn't say it out loud, it wasn't true, it didn't really happen if he didn't speak it.

"It's alright sir, continue" The operator said calmly. Cloud could feel the anger and tears swell up inside him and explode. How could the person on the other line be so calm? When someone is murdered, do they just calmly speak to them? What if it were their own family, how would they feel then?

"She's been kidnapped!" He yelled, his voice quivering while he fought back the tears. Having to call the police only slowed the time it took for him to find her and dispose of her kidnapper himself. He finished the police conversation by giving the address she disappeared from and hung up the phone. Within minutes the authority had arrived.

They scoured the home from top to bottom, searching for evidence and at the end of the day left, telling the distraught lover that they would do everything in their power to return Tifa quickly, and safely.

Cloud wasn't satisfied with their answer and began his own investigation. Though it was late at night, he set out on the town, knocking on every door and asking the neighbors if they had heard any screams the night before. As luck would have it, a neighbor across the street had seen a suspicious car fleeing the town in the direction of Midgar. They thought it was strange for a black car to be speeding out of such a quaint town and to head in the direction of the abandoned city seemed even odder. And thus, Cloud packed his bags and headed for the destroyed city.

- - - - -

She lifted her head and blinked her eyes several times. The room seemed to be spinning and she saw doubles of everything. A small whole in the wall, about an inch in diameter let a tiny drop of light pour in. She wondered where she was and how she had gotten there. She stood up slowly, pain coursing through her bones, and pressed her face against the wall to peer out through the tiny hole, but was unable to recognize her surroundings.

She could hear a rustling noise above her head and began to panic. "What happened to me?" she thought to herself. She could barely remember anything. She looked around as her eyesight adjusted and focused.

She was in a shack somewhere unknown. The walls were made of cheap wood and had a few wholes in them. She was in the corner of a basement, between two adjacent wooden walls. She realized that she was in a cage. The other two walls surrounding her and cutting her off from the rest of the basement were made of wrought iron. A keyed entry was on the other side of the gate leading into her prison.

She froze but kept her eyes moving slowly. There was no way out. The iron cage stretched all the way up to the ceiling and was welded to the walls. She wanted to scream but thought better of it. Whoever had kidnapped her had done this before. She had not been their first victim.

She slumped to the ground and began to cry, wishing that Cloud were next to her, holding her in his strong arms. Anger consumed her body and she leapt up, lunging at the cage bars and shaking them vehemently. She grunted angrily and sat back down, noticing a sharp pain in her right ankle. She crawled into what little light she had and examined her leg. A large metal clasp was fastened around her ankle and was connected to a chain that ran along the floor, and was bolted in the corner. She screamed as softly as she could as the hot tears flowed freely from her eyes.

She looked around the rest of the basement, lit only by a single candle flame resting on a large wooden platform. It looked to be on some kind of a rotation device, a sex device, she feared. Metal chains with handcuffs were fused to each corner. Whips and free hanging chains were attached to the walls and the whole room smelt of rotting fish.

Tifa swallowed the lump in her throat as she heard footsteps descending the stairs across the room from her. A tall, bald man entered the room wearing a pair of jeans without a shirt, his large gut hanging over his belt loops like a bowl of overflowing jelly. She began to shake violently as he neared her, inching her way towards the corner. She feared what he would do to her. The man squatted in front of the gate to her cell and began to kiss to her as if she were an animal.

"Here kitty, kitty, kitty." He cooed, motioning with his finger for her to come to him. She pressed herself against the corner and placed her knees together at her chin in fear.

He had climbed through an open window in her bedroom while she laid waiting for Cloud. It had been a hot summer night in Kalm Town and she had opened the window to let the breeze in. She tried to remain quiet when he entered and reached for her fighting gloves that were in her nightstand. He rooted around in her dresser looking for valuables but caught sight of her before she could put her gloves on. She jumped up to run from him but he caught her and threw her back on the bed, where she hit her skull on the headboard, drops of blood caressing its surface.

She had blacked out and when she woke up she was in this cage. She did not know that her kidnapper had bumped into the shelves behind the bar knocking glasses to the floor, nor did she know why this man had taken her.

He stood up and reached for the candle on the platform behind him, crouching again and bringing it in front of his face, showing his sadistic grin of missing teeth. A sudden wave of shock swept over her as if she had been punched in the face. She knew this man. He had came into the bar once just months earlier; she remembered him because he had stared at her for over an hour straight. She didn't think much of it then since many guys stared at her, that was something which could not be helped; but there was something frightening about the way he stared at her, it was as if he was planning something.

She did not know that after his initial viewing of her that the man had developed an obsession and had paced in front of the bar several times a day, peering into the window and watching her work. She did not know that he would sit on a branch outside her bedroom window and watch her while she slept, or changed clothes. She did not know that if Cloud hadn't arrived when he did, she would have been taken much earlier.

He removed a key from his pocket and opened the cage door, closing it softly behind him and advancing towards her. She continued to back into the corner even though there was no more ground to cover. He could see the fear in her eyes and he loved it; he craved it. He wanted to have her, to own her, to control her. He wanted to be able to decide her fate. He wanted to be God to her.

He continued to advance on her slowly; step by step. Tifa looked away and gritted her teeth, knowing what was about to come. She jumped up and kicked him in the gut with her free leg, sending him buckling to his knees. She tried to kick him again, this time in the head, but his hand shot out and gripped her ankle. She screamed at his deathly grip and tried to shake him off her, but he pulled his arm back hard, sending her to the ground in a most degrading position.

She closed her legs together tightly as he reached into his back pocket. She stared at him with fire in her eyes and brought her hands up in front of her face when he revealed a syringe. She shook her head and screamed as he thrust the needle into her upper arm, dispensing its oblique liquid into her veins. She tried to wriggle her arm free but it was too late. She felt the room spin around her again and she slumped back to the floor.

She awoke just a few minutes later to find herself lying on the same wooden platform she had seen before. She looked up at her outstretched arms and saw that they were bound to the corners. Her gaze shifted to her feet and she saw that she was completely trapped, her feet were bound as well and she could feel an intense cold surround her body and clutch her.

He was standing at her side, naked as well, and brought his face just inches from hers, their noses touching. She could feel his hot breath against her lips and smelled his horrendous halitosis.

"Ready for some fun, baby?" his raspy voice questioned. Tifa lunged her face at him and bit his nose hard, leaving a deep impression and producing some blood. He swore and grasped his nostrils, backing away from her. "You bitch!" he yelled when he noticed that the bleeding had stopped. He looked at her for a moment in shock, and then walked up to her to slap her across the face as hard as he could. "No more Mr. Nice Guy."

She spit at him and he hit her again, this time in her stomach. The blow nearly made her vomit and her body tensed up. He grinned evilly, his only front tooth sticking down beyond his lower lip. He advanced at her and climbed up on the table. She screamed and tried to shake him off but she was tied down too tightly.

When he was finished with her he left her to wash himself off. Once he was gone she could feel vomit rise in her throat and turned her head to let it out. She was dirty and sweaty and wanted a shower more than anything in the world.

He did not return to her that night as she shivered in the cold basement, naked and reeking of his filth. She cried herself to sleep and prayed for Cloud to rescue her. There she remained, on the slab of wood, starving and alone. Her torture was over…for now.

- - - - -

It took Cloud less than a day to arrive in Midgar from Kalm; his new record time. He had to find her before something awful happened to her. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he failed her as he had failed Aeris.

He entered the city under the plate in Sector 3. The whole city looked like a junk heap. Though the slums had always been full of garbage, sections of wall and the upper plate had fallen due to the storm caused by Meteor. He kicked away charred shards of metal as he walked, slowly looking around for any signs of life.

Rats scurried in the distance and startled him. He jumped and turned to face their direction, finding nothing but a spinning hubcap. He found deep tire tracks in the mud that must have been created recently, after the recent thunderstorm that had swept the area. Water still dripped from pipes and cables of the old trains, which hung lifelessly over steel framework like a spider's web.

He followed the tracks until they stopped under a black car; a car similar to the one described by his neighbor. His blood started pumping vigorously through his veins as he thought that he was close to finding his love. He opened the driver's side door and peered in, squinting his eyes into focus in the dark. Even though much of the upper plate had fallen as an aftermath to Meteor, darkness still shrouded the once proud nation.

He sat in the Driver's seat and searched around for any kind of evidence he could find. He could hear the impending arrival of police cars and looked up into the rear-view mirror to see the swirl of flashing lights pulling up behind him. Relief enveloped his body as he saw the policeman get out of their car and advance towards him. He knew they could scour the car for clues and perhaps tonight he would already be reunited with her.

The driver approached him and hovered over him like a great statue, forever strong and unmoving. Cloud looked up at the authority and nodded in salutation.

"Sir please step out of the car." The officer ordered calmly.

Cloud obliged but was met with great hostility. The next thing he knew he had his arms behind his back in handcuffs and was being pressed against the hood of a squad car. It happened so fast that he had had no time to react and even now was confused about the entire situation.

"Officer, I think you have the wrong guy…" He tried to continue but his body was thrust into the hood of the car with such force that he felt as though his windpipe had burst.

"Are you Cloud Strife?" The officer barked. Cloud nodded as best he could while gasping for air. "You're under the arrest for the disappearance of Miss Tifa Lockheart."

- - - - -

The sun peered down from the heavens in an angelic fashion; the warm air caressed his gentle skin and provided the much needed heat for him. He sat up, his head in pain from an uncomfortable nights sleep on a prison cot. He looked around cell and saw stone; gray stone and a barred window. He stood up and pounded on the door.

"Let me out!" He called and was promptly met with the cold stare of a prison guard.

The husky man on the other side of the door opened it and grabbed Cloud by the arm. He threw him into a room with a table and two chairs, a mirror along one wall that was obviously one-way. Cloud sat down and waited until a detective greeted him in a brown tweed suit. The detective sat down across from him with a clipboard rested on one knee.

"Do you know why you are in here?" The man asked. Cloud shook his head fervently. "You are here for the disappearance of Miss Tifa Lockheart." He continued, "It is our job to eliminate immediate family and friends as suspects but however, we have found that you are our prime suspect. You were the last one seen with her, and when needed for questioning you split town. Now, does that seem like something a concerned friend would do?"

"You've got it all wrong detective!" Cloud stated angrily, he wanted to take the man by the shoulders and shake him until he saw the truth. How could these people think that he would do something like this to the woman he loved? "I went to look for her myself! I want her back more than anything in the world and I didn't think that your patrol could find her faster than me!"

The man leaned back in his chair and tapped the clipboard with his pen. He sighed heavily and gave Cloud a look of slight disbelief.

"Would you be willing to take a polygraph test to prove your innocence, Mr. Strife?" Cloud nodded in agreement and was led to a room with a machine.

It was around this time that he realized just how poorly he had handled the situation just two days earlier. If he had called the police as soon as he found Tifa missing, this could have been avoided. He waited too long to call, and vanished before the police work even began, he knew how it made him look, but still, they had to understand his reasoning.

Instead he sat for hours; a million questions being thrown in his face like lightning bolts, accusations flying wildly all the while his poor Tifa lay lost somewhere, and who knew what was happening to her. After careful questioning and tiring tests it was proved that there was not sufficient evidence to hold Cloud accountable and he was summarily released, being rid of the title of 'prime suspect'.


	3. Death of a Pilot

A harsh cold had settled in the basement causing her skin to be covered in goose bumps. She hadn't seen her kidnapper in days and was beginning to fear that she would die. The shack was perpetually darkened and she couldn't be too sure about how many days he had left her there, but it was beginning to take its effect on her. She had lost weight, at least ten pounds since he had left her with no food or water. She had tried to hold herself in for as long as she could but, to her disgust, nature called and she was forced to dirty the table she lay on. Her back was covered with bedsores, her limbs went in and out of consciousness and her wrists and ankles were swollen and bloody.

As soon as he had left her after that last frightening attack she had begun to try and wriggle herself free from the clasps that encircled her arms and legs. To no avail she fitfully wrought and forced her arms through the clasps. At one point she stopped caring whether she would break her wrist or not, but after the blood has seeped down onto her head and she could no longer feel the pain she passed out, hungry, tired, and in pain. Her ankles looked much the same and she could smell the disgusting odor of blood, sweat, and body waste mixed together, which had made her vomit on a number of occasions.

She could no longer move her fingers without excruciating pain when, much to her disgust, yet surprise, he returned. Though she feared and hated this man, he was the only one who could keep her alive at this point, and though she refused to admit it to herself, she knew that he had complete control over her.

She wanted a shower more than she ever had in her entire life and was elated to see him standing at the base of the staircase holding a garden hose, which stretched up into the upper part of the building. The water, she thought as he washed down the table, was a heralding of what may come, as the icy chill ran down her spine, washing away the filth and blood that had crusted to the wood and her skin. Though she received no soap, the end result was quite gratifying.

Next to come in her ordeal would be food. Just as she had expected, he did not bring good food, but old leftovers, uncooked. He shoved the food forcefully down her throat, though she would have graciously accepted it with ease. It tasted horrible, but she didn't care, if she didn't have it, she would surely die.

"Cloud where are you?" she asked herself over and over again.

She couldn't understand why her love was taking so long to reach her. In every instance where she had been in a bind, her knight in shining armor was there within hours. Perhaps it had been hours, she thought, though it must have been days. Tears had formed deep red lines down her face and soaked her hair beneath her head. Her eyes were still encrusted with the salty pain even after he had hosed her down.

Now he stood over her again, reaching for the zipper to his pants as he had days ago. She cringed at the thought of what her torture for today would be; she prayed that he could do no worse than had already been done. Wrong she was, for she could never imagine what was to come.

He stared at her, an almost tribal look in his eyes and she could smell the distinct musk of alcohol emitting from his breath. It made her gag, and he sensed it. His gaze fell below her head and lingered there until he got up on the table and stood over her, as he had the last time. He bent over and tried to thrust his tongue into her mouth, but again she bit him and could only wonder why this idiot had attempted to close in on her again. He wailed and flung his arms to the side during his own pain and when she finally let go of his muscle he punched her in the nose, breaking it and drawing blood. She groaned with pain and he ripped out a chunk of her hair.

"I've had just about enough of your defiance." He said evilly with a sly smile across his dirty lips. Tifa felt as if she had shrunk at that moment and tightened up every muscle in her body, preparing herself for whatever it was he would do to her.

He stood up on the table, nearly knocking his head against the ceiling and proceeded stomp on her chest. When he finally finished she vomited again and screamed more obscenities at him than she ever had in her entire life to anyone. He laughed and brushed himself off, then ran his filthy hand up and down her leg and walked towards the stairs.

"See you in hell, bitch." He exclaimed as he left her alone once again.

The tears flowed freely from her eyes now and she screamed for Cloud with every ounce of strength left in her. She wrenched her arms and legs harder than ever, but only brought on new pain and this time; she heard a crack in her right wrist. She screamed in agony and passed out, not knowing if she would wake up, or if she wanted to. If Cloud didn't come soon she would accept her terrible death sentence.

- - - - -

His jail time done and forgotten, Cloud tried to plan his next move. He feared the police were gathering evidence against him, and going into Midgar again may worsen their case against him. Still, Tifa was more important to him than life itself, and if he were sentenced for life he would sit there and take it, as long as he knew that she was all right.

One thousand thoughts and painful images ran through his mind each second; images of Tifa being tortured, beaten…or worse. He couldn't bare to think that she may have even been…No, not Tifa, it had taken him over 21 years to admit his love for her, he could not lose her now, not now, not this way, not without proving just how much he loved her. He would marry her if he ever found her. She would come home safe and sound and he would propose, in the most romantic and picture-perfect way possible. He had called Yuffie and asked her how she dreamed of being proposed to. She had only turned her nose toward the air and snorted, "I will never be tied down to some half-witted bastard, I'm gonna be a bachlorette forever!" and promptly hung up the phone. After being rejected, Cloud had consented to call Shera.

"A party-like atmosphere," Shera had said, looking at the heavens lovingly, "with the whole group behind you and tons of flowers. Some soft music would be nice, but I'm sure that any situation in which you proposed to her would excite Tifa. Knowing you wanted her to be your one and only is all she really needs."

Cloud had stayed with Cid for a few hours trying to contemplate his next move. He needed to sneak into Midgar, or at least be able to hide easily in case the police showed up. Cid agreed to fly him there on the Highwind and promised to have the whole group waiting at the bar when he returned. Shera would select the ring for him so he wouldn't have to waste another moment while his love lay helpless and alone somewhere.

Midgar was still dark and menacing as ever when Cloud dropped down from the airship. A hard landing, he thought as he rubbed his sore behind. He had landed on a thick piece of steel, but he didn't mind, it was a small price to pay after several weeks without Tifa. His hair was a mess from lack of sleep, dark circles had formed under his eyes, but coffee and the volition to see his love again kept him awake and ready for anything.

He returned to the spot where he had been arrested, the black car still remained. With his sword properly secured in its sheath behind his back, he passed the car, running his finger lightly along the length of its hood. He kicked some scrap metal out of the way as he made his way through the rubble. Broken down and crushed metal towered over him like skyscrapers, and the air was thick with the smell of decay. Darkness was all he could see for what seemed like eternity, though it was nearly only half an hour.

At long last he saw what appeared to be a light, for it could not be glare from a small spot of sunlight, though there were holes in the upper plate, since it was night time now and nothing but an artificial light could shine in its depths. Cloud's pace increased dramatically and eventually turned into an all-out sprint as he raced towards the shack that potentially held his soon-to-be fiancée.

He stopped suddenly as he approached, when the door opened and a corpulent bald man came slightly limping out. Cloud's eyes narrowed when he saw the wretched man and knew that his lady laid waiting inside. He would deal with the pervert later, but first he wanted to make sure that Tifa was all right. The man began walking towards Cloud's direction and the spiky blonde quickly dropped out of sight. As the man walked past him Cloud silently slipped into the wooden shack from which the pervert had emerged.

Inside was a ghastly sight: garbage and dirty clothes strewn about everywhere, the filth clung to his ankles like a mudslide. He sifted his way through the mess and called for her.

"Tifa!" he exclaimed.

A moment later he heard the weak cry of an injured angel struggling to survive. He looked around; up, down and all around to see where the noise had come from. While looking feverishly around he noticed out of the corner of his eye, an indiscrete door hidden in the shadows. He walked slowly over to it and turned the knob, the creek of the old wood setting him off guard. A flight of stairs descended into the seeming abyss and he began to ease himself cautiously down them, running his hand along the wall, searching for a light switch.

- - - - -

She lay motionless for days, trying to let herself die, trying to push her mind to the brink of termination.

"Kill me now and end my pain." She said to herself over and over again.

She had always been a strong woman, never let anything get her down but then again, she had never endured something as diabolical as her current situation. She had been down-and-out before, but never like this. She would have given anything to have been strapped to the chair in Junon's gas chamber all over again, instead or this.

She had passed out several times in the past couple weeks from the stench of her own body. Her kidnapper had washed her once, fed her twice, and nevermore. She was wasting away to nothing and feared that even if Cloud did come rescue her soon, she would be unable to pull through.

Her ankles and wrists lay motionless and broken from her most recent, violent attempts to free herself from her torture bed. He had left her alone again some days ago, shortly after his last devastating attack on her. Her eye still remained swollen and bruised, and her vision was still blurry, her hair was tangled in a mess that could not be saved and had even began to fall out from her stress, and him ripping at it in a fit of rage. Her torso was covered with bruises, cuts, and dry blood.

At one point he had even taken a kitchen knife and cut her stomach, not deep, but enough to draw blood. For all accounts she should be dead, but somehow that seemed the easy way out. No, she would have to suffer before she died.

Once, after he had beaten her long and hard, he took the same kitchen knife as earlier and cut her cheek, threatening to thrust the long steel blade into her gut the next time she didn't do as he said. She had long ago given up giving him the pleasure of seeing her frightened, and just stared at him blankly. He left in a fit of rage and threw the knife at her, it landed just next to her head, and there it remained.

"What more could he possibly do to me that wouldn't kill me?" she thought to herself, though she tried not to imagine what horrible deed she could endure.

He returned that day holding a small bucket of ice-cold water and a sponge. The characteristic devilish grin was sprawled across his face as he sat the bucket next to her head and plucked the knife from the wood beside her. He wet the sponge and began lovingly (if he was capable of such an innocent emotion) rubbing her body with the frozen liquid.

It stung more painfully with each caress but yet she was delighted to be clean. Her tolerance level had dropped dramatically since she was abducted and she realized how weak she truly was. At night she dreamed of a hot bath and a cure materia, even a stiff drink. When he was finished he wiped his hand along her cheek, leaving a stream of icy water. She was cold but settled on the fact that this wasn't the worst he could have done. Nothing was worse than the night with the knife.

"How would you like to move with me sweetheart?" his cold, raspy voice asked.

She scrunched her face into an awkward frown, which angered him. He grabbed her hair and forcefully thrust her face forward and back into the wooden slab several times as if she had shaken her head 'yes'. He left her with a throbbing headache that night and left to find some food to take with him for their impending departure.

Abandoned and sore, she actually contemplated giving in and trying to suck up to him, perhaps a new strategy was what she needed. She did not want to show weakness to him or to herself but she was running out of ideas…and time.

She wondered where he would take her now. If he let her loose from her table she would not be able to attack him, not with broken bones and in her weakened condition. No, he had planned this well, she could not do anything herself without him; he was in complete and total control of her, just as he had wanted.

"Cloud," her thoughts kept returning to him. She was in a bind, and for once her hero wasn't coming to save her. "What could be keeping you?" she worried.

She knew that if she ever got out of here alive and recovered that she would return. She would kick this man's ass. She would castrate him in the most painful way imaginable. He would receive no pain medication; he would be tortured as she was; only he would not survive. He was scum of the earth, a black plague for which there was no purpose. If he were to die there would be no funeral, and if there were, no one would attend.

She pictured it in her head, and empty funeral house, the closed coffin sitting alone collecting dust, and she, herself would attend and say the eulogy. She composed it in her head and sometimes when he was gone she would say aloud with a smile on her face. She was all she had right now, perhaps she was going crazy, she couldn't tell, but the only person she could talk to was herself right now.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you all for not coming. The man before us led a pointless life that was far too long. He tortured women for pleasure and held them captive, portraying himself as God over them. Let us hang our heads in silence for a moment and reflect. Let us thank God for taking this vile slug from us. The moment I will miss most between myself and this man is the moment in which his eyes glistened over with death, his spirit crushed and he finally realized that _I_ was in control, that _I_ owned him, that _I_ was God. Here's to you, jackass." She would say solemnly, and the casket would be lowered with one final blow from her fist to his face. His grave would be unmarked and nothing more than a hole in the ground. His casket would be made by a young teenager in wood shop, with no knowledge or creativity. There would be no lining and he would be tossed into the grave by herself and Cloud.

"Tossed?" She thought to herself, "No, we will kick the coffin over a cliff, he doesn't even deserve a hole."

She grinned evilly at the thought of his death but it then reminded her of her torture. She screamed for Cloud again and again, knowing that he couldn't hear.

- - - - -

The soft voice of an angel called him deeper into the hole of the basement. There were no lights on and he often bumped into things or stubbed his toe. With each sound that he made he heard a soft moan, as if by someone who was frightened of a murderer and was trying to keep quiet.

He wanted to say something, call her name but his tongue wouldn't cooperate. He was afraid of no response, afraid to find a light switch, afraid of what he might find. A terrible decaying stench flooded the room and seeped into his nostrils causing him to gasp for fresh air. He tried to breathe through his mouth as one thousand fears shot through his head like needles.

"What if she's…" he wouldn't finish but the thought did hang in the back of his mind like a chest in an attic. The smell could conceivably be rotting flesh, and it could in fact be that of Tifa.

"Cursed be thy tongue," he thought to himself for saying such a terrible thing. Tifa had survived Meteor, and Sephiroth, there was no way in hell that she couldn't survive this, though he could never imagine what she had gone through. A thud brought him back to reality as he heard the distant front door open. He immediately ducked down and hid under the nearest object.

"Daddy's home sweetheart." The voice sang. Cloud grimaced at the comment and could hear the basement door open. He then felt the dimmed light hit his eyes as the man flipped the light switch. He looked around for Tifa, but saw nothing and no one. "I forgot you. Daddy can't leave without his angel." Cloud heard a soft moan of disgust and pain, then the sound of flesh meeting flesh as fist met face and the gritted teeth of a broken woman groaned.

As luck would have it, they would not leave that night, instead the dim light would burn out and the man, after screaming wild obscenities, vowed to wait until morning so he could see. With that being said he left his victim for the night.

As soon as the door closed Cloud felt his way around his surroundings and stood up prudently. He softly whispered her name and waited for a response.

- - - - -

Tifa knew that she had finally lost her mind when she began to hear voices in the darkness. She heard strange sounds as well and realized that she was dying at that very moment. She knew that often when a person was about to die that the Heavens would often speak to them or visit them. The dying one could actually speak to the dead and thus Tifa knew who was calling her.

"Papa?" she whispered softly, waiting for her pain to end, waiting to wake up in a bed of flowers with her parents, Jessie, Biggs, Wedge and Aeris all looking over her. She could feel herself reaching up to them with open arms, but for some reason her arms would not cooperate. Aeris and the others looked at her strangely and she could feel a burning pain in her wrists. She opened her eyes and saw only darkness, no blue sky, no flowers, no Aeris. Only twilight, only a cold envelope embraced her.

"Tifa?" the voice called again.

She tried to search through the blackness to put a face to the voice, but saw only nothingness. Perhaps her kidnapper had decided to speak her name; perhaps he was going to treat her like a living human being…or maybe, this was just another one of his sick and twisted torture games.

"Tifa." Again the voice rang, but this time Tifa could hear a slight glint of familiarity. She wanted to scream his name, but if he wasn't there, she feared that her attacker would come to kill her, as he had threatened the last time she called the name of her lover. And if Cloud was there? If she called his name and he was there he may get hurt should her assailant enter the room. Cloud could no doubt kill this man but still, to put her love in danger was not something she would ever do.

All she could mutter was an unintelligible moan of pain. Softly she did whisper, though she had screamed earlier. He had already attacked her for the day; he would sleep now, no more until tomorrow…or maybe days from then.

She could feel the warm, gloved hand of a savior gently touch her leg, but roam around the table, as if he didn't know she was truly there, then again finding her skin he flinched in fear. He softly ran his hand up her leg and torso, then found her cheek and stroked her lovingly, placing a simple kiss upon her forehead.

"Tifa!" he could not contain his excitement and began to kiss her in the dark feverishly. He placed a hand behind her head for support and kissed her again and again, never wanting to let her go. During the sound made by his movements, the moans she made from pain, and the sweet statements whispered into her ear, Cloud heard not the basement door open, nor the footsteps behind him. That is, until it was too late.

Cloud whipped around and reached for his sword. This was it, he thought, he would end this now and return home with his love by his side. He was met with a fist in his face, which threw him off balance. He stumbled back a few steps and rubbed his jaw. He looked around in the dark for his opponent. He could hear footsteps at the far end of the room and figured that the man had fled. Another fist in the face told him otherwise and he struck out into the darkness, greeting the kidnapper with a busted lip.

Again Cloud focused on the other footsteps until he finally realized whose they were. The steps of a pilot had entered the room and stopped to confront the blackness.

"Cloud, where are you?" the untrained stealth agent spoke. There was nothing Cloud could do to stop the man in front of him. All he could do was listen in that instant, hear the pervert reach for a gun and hear the safety unlock.

"Cid!" Cloud called, knowing there was nothing else he could do, but that wasn't enough. The bullet dislodged and found it's way into the old man's gut. The man had reached his life goal; he had made it into space. He had married his long time love Shera, and had built a life for himself as head scientist for a new company with goals of space exploration. He had his life on track and now…it was all gone. The man with the mission was dead; his body had collapsed to the floor with a cigarette falling from his teeth. Of all the things to kill him, it wasn't tobacco.

With the barrel of the gun still smoking Cloud lunged for the enemy. He grabbed the gun with his right arm and wrapped his left around the man's neck. Underestimated, the murderer managed to toss the gun into the darkness, then drove his heel into Cloud's foot and jammed his elbow into the blonde man's gut. While Cloud was bent over trying to regain himself the other man dropped his elbow into the back of Cloud's head, sending the ex- SOLDIER to the ground.


	4. The Sound of a Bridge

A thin crack in the wall provided just enough light to temporarily blind Cloud as he awoke to an empty room. The stench of all that is rotten still hung heavily in the air. He arose and looked around in the now lit room. The table beside him was covered with bodily waste, secretions and blood, with clumps of long brown hair wedged between splinters of wood and more blood around four metal clasps which were placed at the four corners of the table.

"She's gone." He said to himself, dying inside for letting that repulsive man get away with her.

He had her, she was in his hands and he let her slip away. There was so much he could have done to save her, but he did nothing, he kissed her and let a murderer get the jump on him. He felt so weak, so powerless, he saved the world goddammit, but he couldn't save his girlfriend? "Girlfriend", he thought to himself, he wished he could call her that again, hoping he wasn't too late. "Girlfriend", he thought to himself, perhaps even wife. Again he had failed her. How many times could a single person fail someone?

He walked over to the door leading up to the rest of the house but stopped at the base of the staircase. He squatted next to the body of his fallen comrade, his eyes still open with the fear and knowledge of impending death. Cloud reached out and gently closed the man's eyes then stood up and looked for a sheet upstairs. He placed the sheet over Cid's body and called the police. After the phone call he sat down on an old car outside and waited for the police. Thank God for cell phones, he thought, and then had an epiphany.

The police would blame him for this. He would go back to prison and he would never find Tifa. He had seen the night before what the man was doing to her and knew she didn't have much time left. At the thought of this a tear ran down his cheek. He wanted to kill himself for letting this happen. Last night, he could have stood up and stopped the man, but instead he just sat there. True he wanted an element of surprise, but watched the man beat Tifa. He could never forgive himself for that. Why had he just sat there? He could find no reason other than the fact that he wanted to get Tifa out without a confrontation, knowing that any sort of encounter could result in unfavorable consequences, which was proven.

The glare from the sun reflecting in the headlight of a squad car caught Cloud's eyes and he prepared himself for an arrest. The policeman, the same one who had arrested him prior, exited the car and walked up to him, a conceded look on his face. Cloud rolled his eyes and stood up to greet the man, who in turn pulled a gun on him and ordered him to stay back.

"Look, there's a dangerous criminal on the loose with my girlfriend and who just killed one of my best friends so I suggest you don't waste your time by trying to convict me and instead focus on catching the real asshole." Cloud said with his arms pointed to the heavens in surrender. The cop deciphered his words for a moment then slowly lowered his gun and followed Cloud into the basement where the pilot lay. The deputy called for back up and told Cloud to get lost and to find his girlfriend. The spiky haired man could have kissed him but ran instead away from Midgar and off to figure out where Tifa and her kidnapper were.

The sun had nearly set when he returned to Kalm, the orange orb hidden partially by the surrounding mountains; with purple lines of clouds stretching from either side and darkening the yellow and pink sky. Cloud sat on the roof of Tifa's bar and contemplated his next move. He thought about Cid though, and what he would tell Shera, how he would tell her. Or perhaps the police already had. No, because she would have called in distress.

He looked up towards the sky, asking for guidance, needing his whole team there with him. Aeris and Cid were dead, and Tifa was missing, it seemed as though the group was falling apart. Yuffie was in Wutai training heavily, as she had been since the Highwind dropper her off from the Northern Crater. No one had seen or heard from Vincent save Cid, who had seen him leaving Lucrecia's Falls just a few months earlier. The vampirical man had lifted his head at the sound of the Highwind and watched it fly off into the distance, but never made any attempt to contact anyone. Barret was in charge of rebuilding Correl and had no time for another adventure. Reeve was retired, had taken all the money in his bank account and moved to Junon, where he lived peacefully trying to build a real life for himself, though he was known to have kept Cait Sith in his closet for old memories. Red was studying his grandfather's work and the Turks had started their own organization. No one could help him. He was completely alone.

He stood up and looked out towards the mountains to the South. The wind had picked up out of the eastern sea breeze and had molded his spikes into a horizontal fashion. He gazed to the south with a confused yet determined look in his eyes. He would find Tifa and avenge Cid.

Tifa couldn't have gone far. They had a day's head start but still they could only travel south due to a lack of passage through the mountains. The car had been taken from Midgar and must still be their main mode of transportation.

He still wished he had done something. Prevented Cid's death, or even Tifa's kidnapping. He couldn't give up on her and jumped to the ground, two stories below him, with one knee and fist on the ground. He looked up at the center of the town with his eyebrows pointed towards his nose. He would right his wrong and took off towards the Chocobo Ranch.

He arrived at the family business just a few hours later. He bid for his golden chocobo to be brought to him and set off for his love. Neither Choco Billy nor his sister questioned the hero, learning long ago that asking questions was futile when Cloud seemed to be on a mission.

Cloud and his chocobo raced south faster than they ever had in any race at the Gold Saucer. They crossed the mountains and rivers with the greatest of ease for days until they came to a forest path late one afternoon. Frustrated that he could not find the kidnapper or any sign of Tifa, he tied his chocobo up for the night and settled down and built a warm fire for the night. Try as he might, he could not go on forever without sleep, nor could his faithful feathered steed. He soon fell into a deep and fitful night sleep, still cursing himself for his weaknesses.

- - - - -

The large, black man tapped his pencil lightly against the document that sat before him. The words had blurred together hours ago and though he knew he needed to read and sign it, he could only stare blankly at it while his secretary had run in and out with more paperwork to fill out. The work kept piling up, permits, land deeds, bids and other legal documents were stacked up on his desk like fortress walls, blocking him from the outside world. He had already chewed one pencil into oblivion and concentrated on this one with the same look in his eyes as he had pierced the first one with.

He could hear the door open softly and saw from over his stack of papers the forehead of the young blonde woman walking over to his desk with yet another cream colored folder and place it on the mountain before him. As the door closed his gaze shifted to the gun grafted to his right arm. There his stare remained until his eyes watered from a lack of blinking. He closed them softly and let them dry, recalling the news report he had seen the previous night.

His dearest friend had been kidnapped, beaten, raped and possibly killed. His old comrade was killed trying to save her and the spiky headed fellow who had spearheaded their campaign to save the planet had disappeared. He felt helpless in his current state. He could not leave his city without someone in charge but he couldn't sit idly by while his friends were dying. He sighed deeply and reached for the office phone on his desk. He spoke as calmly as he could to the man on the other side.

"Reeve?" Barret asked, still holding a grudge against the Shinra executive for his deception during the Sephiroth war. The man on the other end of the phone was taken aback and nearly fell out of his chair at the sound of the black man's voice.

"Barret? Never in a million years did I think you would ever call me." Reeve responded, still in shock. "Did you hear about Tifa? And Cid?" he waited for a response. "What are we going to do? Yes…All right, count me in. I'll meet you in Corel tomorrow."

Reeve hung up the phone and sat back in his chair, breathing a sigh of disbelief and running his fingers through his hair. He had always wondered what his old teammates were doing and whether they ignored contacting him or if they had just forgotten. He had wanted to rebuild himself as their friend, not a traitor.

- - - - -

Wutai hadn't changed much since the threat of Meteor. The only real change was the school that opened in Godo's temple. It was a small school with only five classrooms, one on each floor of the pagoda, but it attracted all of the town's aspiring ninja's. While classes were held on the weekdays, practice matches were held on the weekends, and as one would have guessed, Yuffie was the person to beat in such competitions.

"Good match!" the cheerful young ninja chanted while bowing to her opponent. "Next!" she cried for a new challenger. She had practiced religiously since she had returned from the Northern Crater oh so long ago and had attended the school that was opened. As much as she enjoyed showing off her talents as a fighter, she grew bored with each training ninja, longing for a fight she would actually have to work at in order to win.

Her sense of pride and selfishness had not deteriorated since she returned from battling Sephiroth. Rather, she had become more conceited with her newfound fame and fortune. She hadn't bothered to make friends while at school, instead driving them away with her stories of grandeur. There was one person that she cared to talk to in her classes, but he would never fight her, and that angered her. The fact that she couldn't control everyone she met still enraged her.

Her trainer had left the room a few minutes earlier to answer a phone call, missing her latest victory and returned with the phone to hand to the teenager. She graciously accepted and was astonished to hear the voice that had once controlled Cait Sith on the other line.

"Reeve!" she screamed, clutching the phone and jumping in the air. "What? He is? When? Oh My God! Sure of course I'll come. See you soon."

She hung up the phone slowly and paused for a moment. It seemed like only yesterday the entire group was just parting ways and saying their goodbyes. She thought that maybe the phone call would be about plans for a reunion, but after hearing Reeve's voice she knew that it couldn't be a party. Reeve was still on the outside of the group, trying to make up for his deception. She couldn't believe that Cid…a man she had once looked up to as a father figure, though she would never admit it, was dead.

Tears began to cling to her eyes and threaten for fall as she turned and ran to her house to begin packing her bags. One small suitcase for clothes, and another, larger one, for the materia she had collected (stolen, rather) since her last mission.

- - - - -

The mountains remained a peaceful haven for the man with the red eyes. He often sat above Lucrecia's waterfall and pondered life. He crouched down with his cape blowing in the wind and his chin resting on his fist, his other hand on the mountaintop for support, reminiscing of his dark and secretive past. Brooding over the transgressions that had haunted him since his days as a Turk and the events leading up to his imprisonment in the basement of Nibelheim's Mansion.

A sixth sense had plagued him his entire life, a certain, uncanny ability to determine a situation's execution, a knowledge of something to come. He had felt the presence of evil some weeks prior and had known that something had happened to his old allies. It was a nagging voice inside him, telling him that something was wrong, that convinced him to seek out the gun-armed man in Corel.

For weeks he had had visions of terrible tragedies overtaking Avalanche. Death, kidnapping and grief clouded his vision as he sat atop Lucrecia's grave, the place he had made his home since he walked away from the Highwind without saying goodbye. He had seen Cid pass over in his airship, but never bothered the old team with his gloomy presence. He could fight along side them since he didn't need to speak, but trying to hold a conversation with say, Yuffie, proved difficult, and everyone else seemed to have their own things going on in their lives, and no time to try and make him talk.

His prophecies were correct, as he had imagined, and agreed to help in times of trouble again, as he had one year ago fought beside Cloud and Cid in the fight against Sephiroth. Though he did wish to be reunited with the former team under much more pleasant circumstances, he was, surprisingly, glad to feel like he belonged somewhere again.

- - - - -

Nanaki had been reading one of his grandfather's books when the call came. It was nothing he could have ever imagined. Cid: dead, Tifa: kidnapped and Cloud: gone. His friends were in trouble and he was called forth to help them. The past year had seen him many trips into the cave of the GI, where the great Seto stood petrified forever. He had visited his father numerous times during his research, for advice, for comfort. Today he did so for admonition, asking his fallen father for protection and guidance during the months ahead.

He had set off from the Canyon and ran as fast as he could to the spot where Barret had designated their meeting. His inability to ride a chocobo made his trip longer than everyone else's but nevertheless he arrived.

"Everyone here?" Barret asked, looking at the faces of his old comrades. "Its like old times in't it? Cept we missin' a few." He bowed his head in prayer, and then looked up a with fierceness in his eyes that had never been seen before. "Let's go get 'em back!"

The group cheered and mounted their chocobos, with Red running along side them. They tracked Cloud down to a forest path by means of his old PHS, which was still in commission. He had been startled when they arrived on several chocobos, nearly sneaking up on him while he rested. If it had been up to him he would not rest until Tifa was found, but his chocobo was not as determined as he, and needed to stop for food and water.

"What are you guys doing here?" Cloud asked as he stood up from beneath a tree he had been resting against, brushing himself off.

"We came to help you, and Teef." Barret answered, rubbing the back of his neck. Cloud nodded in appreciation and walked over to his chocobo.

He placed the reins over his chocobo's neck and mounted her. The others did the same and together they headed south. It felt like old times, with most of the team together, but this time they were on a rescue mission, not a hunt for Sephiroth. They couldn't imagine the man they were after could be more powerful than the great Sephiroth, but they would be sure not to underestimate this foe, he had already proven himself a worthy adversary by managing to kidnap Tifa Lockhart.

- - - - -

The scenery faded together like an oil painting as it blurred by her on either side. Rain streamed down the windows and she could hear the distant sounds of thunder after a flash of lightning. Had she not been sitting down she would have felt nauseous. Mountains lined both sides of the unpaved road like walls closing in on her. It felt good to be out of the basement, but she also knew that with each passing moment she was brought further and further from her freedom…and Cloud.

Day turned into night and night turned back into day and with the setting of the sun, the torturer was given the cover he needed. She learned to fear the sunset as a beacon of evil, foreshadowing the sinister plan of a sick and twisted mind. She felt like Pavlov's experiment had been taken over by the devil.

Cid was dead. She had watched him die and was powerless to stop it. She was strapped to the table with broken wrists and ankles, helpless. Cloud had been there too. She hadn't seen him but she knew that the man who had touched her so gently and kissed her so tenderly was him. He had not seen her injuries, or her cadaverous form wallowing in dirt and grime because it had been night.

She had seen her freedom, reached out and touched it, embraced it, and then watched it slowly slip away from her grasp in an instant of death. Cloud had been beaten nearly to death and she didn't know if he had pulled through. She saw the fight and watched as her hero slumped to the ground after a valiant effort. She wished that he had saved her, been able to pull off the great escape, but she loved him even more for trying. She only wished that she could tell him how much she loved him and how much she appreciated his efforts.

Her life had been short but full of tragedy. She would never forget the sound of Sephiroth's blade slicing into her and killing her father and Aeris. She would never forget the sound of a bridge collapsing as she plummeted from Mt. Nibel, or when Cloud fell from the upper plate. She would never forget when that same upper plate obliterated Biggs, Wedge and Jessie. She would never forget the sound of broken bones and flesh, or the gunshot that had slain her former pilot.

Eyes were the hardest things to forget; the look of shear acceptance in a person's eyes right before they died. The look in Aeris' eyes after Sephiroth had removed his sword from her; in that moment before her soul had left her body; it was a look of every emotion fused together. Of happiness, sadness, anger and fear, all rolled up into one expression. She had seen that same expression on Cid before he slumped to the ground in a pool of blood. It was a look that would haunt her for the rest of her days, which although she felt she hadn't much time left, seemed to drag on in torture. It may have been dark in the basement, but the whites of Cid's eyes stood out like headlights to a deer.

Perhaps in that brief instant before death was a moment of ecstasy. Perhaps in that moment was the reflection of life, a thousand memories flashing before one's eyes. Perhaps a final confrontation between heaven, hell and earth.

Tifa leaned her head against the backseat window of the car and watched as the rain fell hard against the glass. She could feel the abrupt stop of the car as its tires screeched across the dirt and came to direct halt. The driver turned around and glared at her with a vengeance.

"Don't you EVER, lift your head up, ya hear?" He snarled, taking a long lead pipe and striking her once across the leg. She brought her arms up over her head and buried her face in the car seat. "Don't look out the window, don't move, don't make a sound, just DON'T do ANYTHING!" He yelled, beating her once more. He dropped the pipe and resumed driving, looking around to make sure that other driver's weren't suspicious of his actions. He drove as calmly as he could, with a look of nervousness plastered across his face and constantly looking over his shoulder and out of the corner of his eye's to see if he was being followed.

Tifa rested her head on the seat and looked at the roof of the car. The gloomy gray sky had begun to turn orange as the sun fell. Her body tensed, knowing what time it was.

When Cloud had hit the floor she had felt as if her life was over. She thought that the man would kill her then and there, as he unclasped her. She wanted to attack him, to run away but her limbs wouldn't cooperate. He scooped her frail form up off the table and placed her over his shoulder. He walked through Midgar with her shivering on his back in the middle of the night. The air had cooled considerably and when she shivered, he smacked her bottom as hard as he could, jerking her and making her scream with each devastating blow.

She was a strong-willed woman and he knew that. That, along with more obvious reasons, was why he picked her for his next victim. He had fallen in love with her body during the big media hype following the near destruction of the planet. She was a hero, and men across the world were talking about how much they wanted to sleep with her, but none of them would follow up on their crushes, except for him.

He would be the one to do it. He would be the one to bag Tifa Lockheart. His mind was made up and he knew what he wanted. He wanted her, in every unholy way possible. He wanted her to need him, as he felt he needed her. He wanted to hold her life in the palm of his hand and have the power to crush it if he so chose.

He didn't think that she would last so long. He felt a few weeks tops would do her in and then he could move on to the next woman. He never knew that she would be able to live under such conditions for so long. Most of the other women he had tortured had died within a couple weeks, but Tifa, whether it be a blessing or a curse, was still alive after over a month.

He didn't know what to do. He was getting really sketched out about having her around and feared that this Cloud character was catching up to him. The blonde-haired man had saved the world, defeated the great Sephiroth, there was no telling what such a man could do to him, especially when a woman was involved.

He didn't want to kill her; she was so beautiful, even now, with her battered and broken body. He had explored all his fantasies with her, but would keep her until she died, then dispose of the body. He still figured she would last another week or two, but how he was going to keep her hidden was another problem.

The gears in his head were turning that night as he fought desperately for an idea to keep her in his possession. The torture he instilled upon her that night was the same as he had the past few nights on the road, he would beat her for hours at a time, then sit atop her and punch her over and over. Finally he would tie a rope around her neck, and the other end to his wrist, and he would fall asleep on the front seat.

The moon finally made way for the sun when he would wake up. The rain had finally ended with the passing of the sun, but it didn't put her attacker in any better of a mood. He'd start the car and drive as far as he could until nightfall, planning his next move on her. He had left her in chains at his old house, and made her sit in the back seat leaning low so as not to be seen. He felt that if her wrists and ankles were broken she would be less inclined to try and leave to find help or run away. He also knew that in her weakened state she would be unable to open the car door.

There was a pencil and an old, crumpled piece of paper on the floor beneath her, which she had stared at for the past three hours. Finally she leaned her head over the seat and grabbed the pencil with her teeth, and used both arms to bring the paper up on to the cushion with her. She gripped the pencil in her mouth and tried as best she could to scribble on the paper. Then with an amazing display of acrobatics she managed to push the paper up against a window for any passing car to see.

He had been driving for quite awhile without hearing so much as a peep from her and wondered what was going on. He thought she had finally died and looked in his rearview mirror to find her holding the paper up to the window. He immediately stepped on the brakes and swerved the car onto the side of the road, pulling a 180. There were no other cars on the desolate road but from her depth there was no way to tell, but still for her insubordination she deserved to be punished.

She dropped the paper and prayed for a miracle; anything to stop him in his tracks, but received nothing but another installment of her punishment. He had brought a knife with him, razor thin to a point from a recent sharpening, and held it up to the side of her face, cutting her cheek lightly with its edge. He then slid the knife along her skin, being careful not to cut her, until it hovered over her gut. With his free hand he played with her belly button, lightly petting it and even kissing it gently. Then with a swift swipe a chunk of her flesh was gone, only a fountain of blood in its place.

"This is the end." She said to herself as she watched the blood gush from her torso.

She would bleed to death, right here, right now. But suddenly she saw something snap inside of him, a devilish grin spread across his face and she knew something far more sinister was to transpire. He took a towel out of the glove compartment and pressed it into stomach to stop the bleeding. After some sort of God-given miracle the bleeding subsided, and he wrapped a bandage around her midriff. Silently he returned to his seat up front and drove the car away as if nothing had happened. It may not have been much, but Tifa was glad to have some sort of covering on her body, if only he could have gotten it by simpler means.

The stars were out that night, scattered across the heavens like a bag of spilled marbles, twinkling in transcendent tranquility. The car was parked on the edge of a cliff overlooking a valley. A valley filled with flowers and a peaceful air made Tifa want to leap from the car and take her chances at escaping, but she remained motionless and emotionless as he pummeled her.

But there was something different about the way he hit her tonight, the violence that was once so prominent was gone, and when he finally finished she realized that he had only beaten the seat cushion around her, and in her weakened condition thought that she had just lost total feeling of her body. He opened the car door and sat on the ground beside her head. She looked around, trying to anticipate his next move but she had learned long ago that he was unpredictable.

He sat beside her, playing with the grass at his feet and looking out into the open air with a renewed sense of self. It was as if the valley were calling to him, he felt as though he could tell it anything, like he could open up to it.

"You know how I was raised?" He asked the ghastly thin woman on the seat next to him. She rolled over and looked at him with a confused and terrified looked on her face, with the reflection of the moon dancing in her chocolate eyes. He didn't look at her though; just kept his back to her and continued speaking to the valley. "My father raised me to be a man," he said with an accent on 'man'. "He taught me the ways of the old. Taught me that women were nothing but a nuisance, taught me to hate them and told me that their only purpose was to give birth to my children." Tifa winced at what he had just said. "I wish I weren't like this, ya know." He added, "I wish I could settle down with a nice girl, someone who would take care of me, someone…like you." He said and turned to look into her horrified eyes.

He pushed the front seats forward and squeezed himself onto the floor space behind them. He placed an arm across her stomach and rested his head on her chest, falling asleep peacefully for the first time in years.

Tifa didn't know what to think. She didn't know if he had turned around or was just pretending. She wondered if he would free her, or if he would stop beating her, but in her head she knew that he couldn't change so quickly and easily from a villain to a saint.

She dared not stir him though she was uncomfortable and fell asleep along with him, dreaming of a time when everyone was together, not just when Cid was alive, but when Aeris was too. She could see everyone at Nibelheim, gathered around the well that she and Cloud had played on when they were young. She was serving drinks at a big party, but there was no music and though everyone's mouths were moving, no words or sounds came out. She climbed to the top of the well and leaned back on her hands, looking up into the dark blue sky filled with stars. The moon lit up her skin like a sandy beach, and her perfect figure was outlined in its light wonderfully. She blinked and smiled with such content that she failed to realize that the party had dispersed.

When she looked down to see how everyone was doing she saw only flames. The whole town was in flames, just as it had been before when Sephiroth had burned it to the ground. She screamed and screamed for Cloud and the others but still no words would form on her lips. Then from out of the flames a figure emerged. Not that of Sephiroth, but instead of the man who had kidnapped her. The same glowing eyes of hell glared at her and pushed her off of the well and into the flames, when she finally woke up.

She awoke to find the car moving, with her kidnapper in the front seat driving as if the night prior had not happened. It was mid afternoon and all she could see were the blurred streaks of a tree-lined road. The flames were an omen, a black cat in her path, the ever-present reminder that her day would come, that death was eminent. She only prayed that she would have one last chance to see her friends before she slipped into the next world.

He stopped for a moment to smoke a cigarette, something she had not seen him do since he had taken her. He sat beneath a great oak, with his back leaning against its bark, the cigarette held limply between his thumb and index finger. His elbows rested on his bent knees and he slowly looked up at her, with the deathly stare from her dream. She inched her way towards the opposite car door but could not escape. He yelled and lunged at her with the cigarette, pressing it into her chest, right in the middle of Sephiroth's scar.

"Bitch! I hate you mother!" He yelled as he twisted the burning stick of tobacco harder and harder into her skin. She screeched and tried to fight him off but he was too strong and she was too weak. "Why'd you leave me?" He screamed over and over again until his voice gave out. He slipped off of her and onto the earth outside the car, with tears streaming down his cheeks.

Her skin black and steaming, Tifa turned over and tried to calm him down, cooing to him several times and speaking very softly. Why she helped him she couldn't understand, but she felt that perhaps if she did, he would let her go. Her voice was not strong, but her gasping whispers seemed to sooth his nerves and allow him peace, she only hoped that it would last.


	5. On The Road Again

Author's Note: I want more reviews, but I also want to post a chapter when I finish it, so here it is, a new chapter, but if I dont get lots of reviews I wont post chapter 6! I have it, its being held captive in my computer, its ransom: reviews! Review and I will release it!

The rain had taken a swift course of surprise against the group when they crossed the mountains to the south. Their chocobos had reared and pulled on the reins in a fit of anger and stomped their great claws into the earth with the force of a machine. Cloud and his friends dismounted and looked for cover, finding only a large willow tree, which would be good enough for the duration. 

After the birds were penned Cloud retreated to the base of the tree and sat down with his back against it. He tried to relax and looked up into its branches. Nothing was right anymore; this wasn't how life was supposed to be. Through great hardship comes great reward, or so he thought. He put up with tragedy his whole life; his father's abandonment, the death of his mother, Zack, Aeris and Cid, Nibelheim and now this. He had let Tifa down so many times that he worried she no longer believed he would rescue her, that he was no longer her hero; her knight in shining armor.

The rest of the group had remained as silent as he for most of the trip, giving him his space; his peace and quiet, knowing how difficult this was for him. At times they had all had their doubts about whether or not they would find Tifa alive, or be able to save her after Cloud had described what he found on the table where she laid and the stench that embodied the basement where she was kept.

He still felt a pang of guilt clawing at his insides. A guilt that stressed how weak he was, how he was unable to help her, how stupid he was for kissing her instead of freeing her. It was dark, he told himself, he couldn't see to help her and he was so caught up in the moment of seeing her for the first time that he was overjoyed and had to express his love for her in silence.

He rested his face upon his hand and had no sooner felt the sweet embrace of slumber when a spunky, high-pitched voice awakened him.

"Don't be sad, Cloudy!" Yuffie Kisaragi exclaimed. She had an innocent smile on her face and held up her hand in a peaceful gesture. She cocked her head to one side and giggled. "Teef will be alright, I know it!" With her last comment she bounced away, obviously trying to boost her own moral as well.

Cloud bowed his head and fell asleep once again. He thought about the passage of time and how the slightest movement could change anything on earth. What if he had bought one less item at the store? Would he have gotten home sooner and been able to stop the intruder?

He awoke uncomfortably, having slept late while the rest of the team packed and waited for him. No one dared disturb him, fear of a repercussion from the spiky haired man. He stood up and turned to everyone, trying to hide his apparent displeasure. He brushed his hair back and rested his hands on his hips, as he used to when the group had fought together over a year ago.

"Let's mosey." He said in a tone no one had expected. Today, he felt, was a good day, perhaps he would find Tifa, and perhaps he could go home with her.

Time was of the essence as they raced down the dirt road. No other chocobos were on the path, only cars, which screeched past them honking their horns and nearly hitting the birds. They entered a newly built city and asked to rent a van. The chocobos were boarded in a nearby stable and the team gathered into their new vehicle with Cloud behind the wheel, driving at top speed.

"I found something months ago I thought might be useful in this situation." The dark loner in the back of the van spoke up. Everyone turned to look at Vincent Valentine as if he were a vampire, which was, of course, ironic. "It's a small tracking device, I figure that you would want Tifa to take care of this sick monster when she is well again, and I propose attaching this to him so that you can find him when she recovers." Vincent handed the small machine to Cloud, who put it in his pocket.

Reeve had never been on a mission with the team like this and he didn't know just how to handle himself. He was afraid to speak; afraid to say something that would deem him an outcast. He had always hidden behind his puppet and though he knew what the other members of Avalanche were feeling during the mission, he didn't know how to act around them face-to-face.

"Yo Reeve, loosen up." Barret spoke up, nudging Reeve on the shoulder and awaking him from his daydream.

"Huh, wha?" he said, dazed and confused. Barret laughed and put his good arm around the ex-Shinra employee's shoulders.

Nanaki sat in the back of the van, curled up sleeping. His tail fidgeted from a dream and he occasionally growled slightly, kicking out his back paw at an unforeseen foe. He stirred and sat up to lick his paw, then brought it over his face to clean that as well.

"This van is really too quiet for my taste." He stated, as everyone chuckled.

Cloud looked into the rearview mirror at his comrades. Vincent sat shotgun in the passenger's seat, while Barret, Reeve and Yuffie sat behind him, with Red in the back area. There were six of them altogether, though still a large party; there was so much missing. An air of emptiness floated overhead, they were missing three of their most prominent members. Maybe that's why they had all come to help Cloud, maybe they were all trying to find that something inside them to fill a hole in their hearts.

There was definitely a gap in Cloud's soul. The other three members of Avalanche were gone because of him. He had failed all of them in one way or another. He had seen Sephiroth fall from the sky towards Aeris, but didn't stop him, he had seen the man pull the gun on Cid, but didn't stop him; he had held Tifa in his arms, but didn't help her. It wasn't a matter of whether he could have helped his friends, for any which way he looked at it he couldn't see how he could have; it was a question of whether he would have. He wanted to, but perhaps somewhere in that blonde, spiky head of his was a conceded prick, someone who was only looking out for themselves, not wanting they themselves to get hurt.

He shook his head in disbelief, never in his life had he put himself before anyone he cared about. He couldn't believe he had even thought that and drove on in a deeper trance than before, determined to prove to himself just how selfless he truly was.

- - - - -

Last night had plagued Tifa for hours. She couldn't get out of her mind the fact that the man driving had opened up to her, had spoken to her as if she were a real person. She didn't know what that meant, but she knew it couldn't be good. If something had truly snapped in the vortex of his brain, then she would be the one to receive his transgressions. Now more than ever she wanted to be swept up in Cloud's strong embrace, to feel his soft lips on her own, to hold him to her chest, stroking his hair and whispering into his ear sweet nothings.

The image she had of herself was fading rapidly, in her fantasy world where this tragedy had never happened, where she and Cloud lived happily together without intervention; she could see herself strong and optimistic, prancing around gracefully and holding Cloud's hand. Her hair was full and luxurious, her skin a healthy tan, clean and silky. Her eyes were aglow with the youthful optimism she had had just weeks earlier; on the night when Cloud had returned to her.

Now all she saw when she looked at herself was a mere shadow of her former self. She looked as though death had already consumed her; her body was thin as a rail, with pale ashen skin. Dirt was lodged between her overgrown nails and her hair lay tangled and lifeless, shorter in some areas than in others, with patches of missing locks showing her scalp. If she could look into a mirror she would be even more horrified for her once deep brown eyes had turned a dull shade and showed no hope of light in the two foreboding pools.

He hadn't said anything all morning. He drove in a seeming monotonous way, his expression never changing. He had had renewed love for the slender, deathly gaunt woman on his backseat. She had survived like no other could and he knew that that was a sign. He needed to marry her, needed to have her as his wife, so that she could not leave him but he would no longer need to harm her to get her to stay.

He was driving around the mountains towards Junon. There they would board a ship and dock at Costa del Sol, where they would rest for a night. From there they would travel to the Gold Saucer, where they would be married by the gaming commissioners reverend. He would move her to Mideel, a place where hopefully no one knew her or would recognize her. He could work and take care of her, and she would remain in the house taking care of the children they would have.

Mideel was the perfect place to live, he thought. Not too warm, but never cold and now that it had been rebuilt it was becoming a bustling city. Before buying a house he would have Tifa's hair cut and dyed so she could not be easily recognized, but then again, with all the tourists flooding into Mideel to look at the Lifestream Lake, there was a good chance that she would go unnoticed, or easily accepted.

The Lifestream had transformed the once small island town into a religious haven. People from around the world would flock there to gaze into the emerald green liquid, and talk to their loved one's that had passed on. Sermons were given once a week in the newly built chapel overlooking the lake. It was noticed that people were said to have passed out upon viewing the ethereal pond.

They were passing Condor Mountain as the sun set that night. The giant baby was nearly full-grown and watching over the tower as its mother had prior. The camp hadn't changed much, if at all; since Tifa had visited it the last time, back when Aeris was still alive. She could hear the screeching of the mighty bird and thought how wonderful it would be to be able to fly away at any given moment. Then again she also knew how the creature had felt when its mother was killed; she knew all too well what it was like to lose someone you love.

She had a fear of darkness; fear of what her captor would do to her, especially after his change of emotion the night before. Much to her surprise, he again left her be, only stroking her hair softly and telling her how beautiful she was, he fed her half of his sandwich and quenched her thirst with cool water. She didn't know whether to thank him or not, or what to say if anything for that matter; and just kept silent.

She awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and cars passing. They were on a main road now, heading toward Junon. She still kept down for fear of a beating but she knew that other cars were passing. All too often had she thought of jumping from the moving car; maybe she would die, maybe she wouldn't, but she didn't want to sit around and wait to die a horrible death. She figured that she would have to pull herself along with her arms rather than run, she didn't know how far she could make it, and knew that he would be able to catch her real easily in her condition, and that may result in something far greater than she had ever experienced with him.

Her other concern was the fact that she had no clothes. She was far too modest and shy to escape knowing someone might see her like this. It was hard enough for her to let Cloud see her let alone a complete stranger.

"Cloud," she thought to herself, "was amazing that night." She couldn't think of a more perfect person that she would want to lose her virginity to. She ran over the events of that night in her mind as a smile spread across her face. Maybe she could escape, maybe she could let her embarrassment subside for just a short period of time; just enough time to let someone find her and return her to Cloud. Anything was worth it if it meant she would see Cloud again.

So that was her plan, she would make a run for it, she just needed the right moment, and she didn't know when that would be or if she would have the courage or strength to escape. She looked in the rearview mirror and saw him quietly watching the road, with no emotion on his face whatsoever, only a renewed determination. He stopped that night about fifteen miles outside of Junon, in a secluded section of forest. He opened the back door and advanced toward her. Tifa's eyes widened with fear, "I thought he had changed," she thought to herself as she backed away from him.

She lay in pain, holding back the tears, knowing that he would soon begin to abuse her again. She wondered what his plans for her were, and why he was keeping her alive for so long. "What is he going to do to me?" she asked herself constantly.

- - - - -

With the mountains behind them all that could be seen was the towering monolith at the edge of the horizon. A great winged creature perched on the very top and cried out for the whole continent to hear. It flapped its mighty wings and hopped up and down as cars passed beneath it, the exhaust polluting the air and the noise aggravating the beast.

It would never leave its nest however. Its mother had made that nest years earlier and had guarded the mountain just as the offspring did now. It only left once a day, to fly across the ocean and catch one of the gargantuan sand worms that were burrowed beneath the Gold Saucer. It would return presently, eating its meal as if that would be its last. It would then sit on its legs, ruffle the feathers on its back and rest its great head behind one of its wings to fall asleep.

Something had happened recently that had broken the guardian's cycle. Perhaps it was the over abundance of motor vehicles crossing beneath it, or something else that none of its caretakers knew about, but for some reason the beast had been getting restless, and had even mistaken a human being as a potential meal.

It had flown from its nest in one swift swoop, diving beak first toward the ground and then at the last possible second before a crash was imminent it flattened out and rushed along the earth. It landed on the side of the road, towering over the cars below like a skyscraper. It cocked its head to one side and watched intently the small moving creatures below it. Its eyes darted from side to side and in one quick, fluid movement, it thrust its beak toward the ground and picked up one of the vehicles, crushing it with its powerful beak.

After realizing that the car was no good to eat the bird tossed its head to the side, releasing the terrified passenger's car and watching it fly overhead some quarter mile away, where it crashed into the ground. The bird screamed and flew over to the wreckage and began stomping on the mutilated mass of metal. It picked at the vehicle with its nose and found the remains of the driver. The creature plucked the man from the car and swallowed him whole, then promptly returned to its nest just as the gas tank caught on fire and exploded.

After the incident a great civil war broke out in the mountain. Supporters of a government revolution suggested killing the bird for its transgression, others, the local authority included, continued to remind the citizens what the bird represented: courage and loyalty.

The small mountain village was divided; a few terrorists even attempted to slay the great guardian but were apprehended and sent to prison. It had seemed as if the bird had gone mad, and some who supported the bird's death suggested that it might have gone blind.

"What use is a blind guardian?" One man asked, while shaking a finger in the air in the direction of the creature. He continued to rant and rave until a reassuring hand was placed on his shoulder. He turned around to see a familiar face staring at him. He immediately calmed and shook the other man's hand. "Mr. Strife…what a pleasure to meet you! What brings you to the tower?" He looked over the blonde gentleman before him to see the other faces of hero's, plus one man he had never seen before. He hadn't seen some of these people since they had come to the tower over two years ago, he had never formally introduced himself but had watched the band of hero's as they tended to matters of the colony.

"I was wondering if you might be able to help us." Cloud asked, shaking the man's hand in return. "We're looking for a friend of mine; you may remember her from our last visit? I was wondering if you had seen anything strange recently."

The man shook his head apologetically. "I haven't seen anything strange, or anyone familiar for that matter…except…" He looked up at the ceiling. Cloud's eyes followed but he could see nothing but the carved rock that supported the structure. He shrugged his shoulders when the man met his gaze again.

"Except what?" Cloud asked, interested. Maybe this man held the key to finding Tifa, he thought.

"Except…well, you see, our condor's been actin' real strange lately. He just sits on that nest and screams, night an' day, an' just a few days ago he killed an' ate a man while he drove towards Junon." The man put his hands in his pockets and bowed his head. He kicked some dirt with his foot and looked up at the spiky-haired man before him. "Can you help? Settle down the colonists I mean, they're all gettin' real edgy."

Cloud nodded his head. He accepted the task but also regretted it because it was keeping him from finding Tifa. He was lead up to the Governor's office and was greeted heartily by the government official. The man had jumped up from behind his desk and nervously shook the hand of the man who not only had saved the tower once before, but also the world.

"Mr. Strife thank God you're here. Our condor, he's not well, I'm sure someone in the colony has already told you the situation. The village is divided half and half. One side wants to kill the bird, the other doesn't. I was hoping that maybe you could calm everyone down. This bird comes from a great lineage, the last of its kind you know. T'would be a shame to lose it now; after these creatures had perched atop this tower for so many generations."

Cloud nodded in agreement. "I'll see what I can do." He sat down behind the governor's desk and turned on the PA system. "My friends," he began nervously, not really sure what to say or how to say it, "we all want what's best for the colony. You've all lived here your whole lives, as has this bird. You've grown up here, and so has it. We all make mistakes, and animals are no different. I urge you not to give up on the guardian, give up on it, and you give up on yourselves." A great sigh of relief fell from the governor's mouth as Cloud finished his speech.

Cheesy, the world savior thought as he left the tower, shaking nearly every townsperson's hand as he did so. This small side quest brought him no closer to Tifa, but did renew some of his self-confidence. He was able to help people, as small a task as he had to do; he was able to help them nonetheless. He now knew that he wasn't a total failure.

The word 'Junon' had stuck in his mind throughout the whole ordeal; it plagued him like a virus. "Junon" he said aloud for himself to hear. Vincent looked at him confused.

"Is that where they went?" He asked. Cloud looked at him and shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know but it's a good bet." Cloud continued to drive through the night, reaching Junon in the wee hours of the morning.

"Do you think they're here?" Barret asked, looking around. The city had grown to enormous proportions since Meteor and Holy had collided. Most of the survivors from Midgar had fled their city and traveled to Junon, fearing small villages and wanting the big city life again. Junon was still a port town, where most of the world got its fish. Cloud and the others walked down the lower streets near the shore where he had trained the dolphin. He gathered his memories and looked out toward the ocean, seeing a young teenager sitting near to the shore, wearing shorts and a t-shirt, her feet just barely touching the tide as it rolled in and out. She had short brown hair, a slender body and was humming a sad hymn.

Cloud remembered the first time he had seen her. She had wanted him to help her train her dolphin. He remembered swimming around and feeling like an idiot, chasing after that animal. Tifa was sitting on the shore, with Aeris, and they were giggling and watching him make a fool of himself. It was one of the rare times he had seen them both share the same emotion; usually he was with one who would be happy, while the other would seem solemn.

The teenager turned around and jumped up, running over to him and throwing her arms around his neck. Cloud was taken aback and was nearly knocked over by her sudden burst of affection, but he returned her kindness.

"How are you Priscilla?" he asked. She let go and looked into his crystal blue eyes and smiled; a glimpse of the sun dancing in each of her eyes.

"I'm good, how are you? I heard on the news about Tifa…you must be so sad." She said, looking at the ground and shuffling her feet. Cloud took a step toward her and placed a finger under her chin, lifting it to his level.

"Hey, hey now don't be sad. Tifa's strong, she can take care of herself, she's not gonna let this bring her down." He encouraged, not only cheering her up, but himself as well. He was reassuring himself that she would be all right. Priscilla nodded and jumped into the air with a grin stretching from ear to ear. She bent one leg and tilted her head to the side, laughing.

"You're right; she's fine because she knows that you all are coming to save her!" She said in her most childish voice.

She hadn't aged a day since they had last seen her. She waved goodbye to everyone and trotted back over to the shore. She turned to wave once more and then placed her lips to the whistle hanging on a string around her neck. She blew into the metal object and immediately a dolphin jumped out of the water and into the air. While the water still tumbled off of it like a fountain the animal flipped in the air and landed nose first back into the water.

"Whoa that was so cool!" Yuffie exclaimed.

She stood awestruck in her place while the others walked towards the elevator leading to the upper city. Barret returned to tug on the ninja's arm, reminding them of their current mission. Cloud stopped at the door to the elevator and looked back at Priscilla.

"Priscilla, you haven't seen anything strange in the past few days have you?" He called to the young girl. She shook her head in apology. She knew exactly what he was really asking.

"No, but that doesn't mean she's not here. This is a big city, and its grown since you last came. She could be anywhere."

"Thanks, oh hey, when does the next cargo ship leave?" He asked, hoping she would say a few days. If Tifa and her abductor were here he needed time to look throughout this enormous city. He couldn't take the chance of them getting onto the boat to cross the ocean.

"An hour, I think." She responded, thinking hard and scratching her head. Cloud stomped his foot onto the ground and shook his head.

"Dammit," He said, "they're going to cross the sea."


	6. Just Out of Reach

He didn't want to hurt her anymore. He wanted her to love him like he loved her. But the only way to force her to love him was to put her through just a few more days of torture. He couldn't just walk her onto the cargo ship, he couldn't carry her because it was far too obvious that she was abused, plus the fact that she was the most famous woman in the world made her easy to recognize.

He couldn't disguise her either, since her ankles were broken and she couldn't walk. He had only one option left: he would have to put her in luggage. He grabbed a large duffle bag out of the trunk of his car, recently cleaned after holding his last victim, and set her in it, zipping it up and shutting out all light for her.

He paid for his ticket and a small room with a double bed, since this was a passenger cargo. He walked onto the boat with no questions asked and entered his room. He set the duffle bag in the corner and let Tifa out.

"Stay in this room or else, but I know you wouldn't want to go anywhere looking like that." He said, eyeing her up and down.

A devilish grin crossed his face and he licked his lower lip. He couldn't leave her alone like this; he couldn't be away from his soon-to-be wife for too long. He needed her body before he could explore the ship. He again raped her, then found a piece of duct tape and wrapped it around her head as a gag so she couldn't speak. He then removed a pair of handcuffs from the side pocket of the bag and cuffed one of her arms to the bed.

He closed the shade on all the windows and hung the 'do not disturb' sign on the door handle as he exited. He wanted to mingle, act normal, and he wandered on up to the deck and leaned on a rail. He rested his head on his arms as he gazed out to sea, quickly becoming nauseous. He vomited over the rail several times until finally he decided to retire for the night. He wiped his mouth on his sleeve and turned to head in. As he did so he gasped to see a group of painfully familiar faces heading towards him, talking to each other. There was a young girl with short brown hair, a man in a suit with short black hair, a man that looked like a vampire, a large, bulky black man, a lion and most memorable of all was that blonde, spiky-haired guy with the piercing blue eyes.

They hadn't noticed him and he quickly turned around so as not to be seen. He leaned against the rail to try and look inconspicuous. He pulled out his pack of cigarettes from his pocket and slipped one out. He removed his lighter and lit one end of the slender roll of cancer, placing the filter between his lips and inhaling nervously.

It had been dark when he had seen the man with the icy blue eyes but he had known from his silhouette who it had been. He was the man on the news with his victim; the man who had saved the world.

As he stared intently out at sea he felt a brisk shove as someone bumped into him. He turned by instinct to look at who had done it and was met with the face of Cloud Strife. His body tensed and he knew he needed to get away from him as soon as possible if he wanted to marry Tifa.

"Hey sorry man." Cloud said, placing a hand on the captor's shoulder. The kidnapper just waved him off and coughed out a thank you. He then quickly turned in the opposite direction and walked as quickly as he could towards his cabin.

* * *

They had to run to catch the boat. Junon was crowded with the overflow of people from Midgar. They rushed through the crowds to the ticket window to purchase their slip. The woman behind the counter showed no emotion to their apparent hurried state and slowly took their gil and gave them their tickets.

Cloud swiped up the tickets and continued to run for the boat just as the anchors were being lifted and the ramp was about to be closed. He took a flying leap, as his other teammates did, and landed on the sloping ramp, tumbling down to the deck in a most ungraceful landing. It didn't matter though, he knew Tifa and her captor were somewhere on this boat.

The problem was that Cloud hadn't gotten a good look at the man's face. All he had seen was an outline in the dark and the back of his head from when he had shot Cid. From under the table he could only see the man's legs, but he was sure that if he saw the man again, he could hopefully recognize him.

After apologizing to the man he bumped into, Cloud continued to walk and talk to his friends. After a few moments however, something began to eat at him. Something about the man he had just bumped into stuck out in his mind, but he couldn't be sure what it was. He didn't seem like the type of man who would kidnap someone, but then again that could be to his advantage.

Cloud stopped in deep thought as he tried to compare the man in the dark with the man on the deck. He turned to look back at the man he had apologized to but saw no one leaning against the rail. He looked further in that direction and saw the man pushing his way through an oncoming crowd, trying to get away from something as quickly, and discretely as possible. He walked briskly down the side of the deck and turned back once to look at Cloud, then promptly whipped his head around and increased his pace.

The sun was setting when the group had emerged on deck to scan and secure the area. The flaming orb was behind them as they walked, and when that man turned to glance behind him the light caught his face on the side, showing his silhouette. It was at this moment that Cloud realized that he was, indeed, Tifa's captor. The blood began pumping through his veins and he tapped Barret on the shoulder.

"That was him!" Cloud exclaimed, and Barret turned around to see the man way off in the distance.

"You sure? He looks too normal to have taken Teef." The gun-armed man spoke. Cloud nodded and Barret shrugged his shoulders. "I've seen stranger, I guess." He added as Cloud took off down the deck towards the man. Barret and the others followed and the chase was on.

The perpetrator rounded the back of the ship and began to run. He fled down the stairs, not knowing who was following. Cloud was hot on his heels and tore after him as fast as he could. The man shoved his way through a crowd, who stopped Cloud.

"Stop that man!" Cloud yelled, but no one paid any attention.

He pushed his way through and continued through a set of double doors into the cabin area. The pervert now knew he was being followed and sped down the hall knocking over anything in his path to create obstacles for Cloud.

He turned corner after corner to try and ditch the man on the mission but could not seem to shake him. He finally took a left down on corridor towards an exit to a staircase. He pulled a switchblade out of his pocket and threw it behind him, lodging it into Barret's upper arm. He pulled it out with a groan of pain and threw it to the floor, not having time to pull out a 'cure' materia.

The kidnapper ran to a serving cart and turned to push it into Cloud and the others. Cloud tried to dodge it but it caught his ankle and he was sent to the ground. He quickly got up and continued the chase.

He was nearing the staircase, as if that would mean his safety, but he could lose Cloud and the others in the crowd in the dining hall. It would be jam-packed this time of night and he knew that he would not be found.

As he reached the homestretch the doors leading to the stairs opened and a young girl entered the hall, with a crimson lion creature right beside her. The girl fumbled in her pockets and produced a ninja star, smiled evilly at the man, then thrust it at the man but missed. The metal bladed object whizzed by his head, grazing his ear, but continued on down the hall. Cloud and the others dodged it, having practiced enough with Yuffie to know how to avoid her attacks.

Nanaki lunged at the man and bit him hard on the forearm. The man screamed with pain and called for the police. He kicked the lion in the stomach and pushed him off of him, then backed into a wall as the members of Avalanche moved in on him. He screamed again and again for assistance until finally the footsteps of the cops were heard coming from either end of the hallway.

They quickly apprehended the group and pulled them away from the kidnapper. He grinned at them with a hint of evil in his eyes. Cloud fought against the police who had his arms and yelled.

"That's the man who kidnapped Tifa Lockheart!" He said over and over again to deaf ears. The policemen were trained to fight terrorism, no matter who it was, whether the assailant was famous or not.

The team was placed in a holding cell while a witness statement was taken from the kidnapper. Others who had seen the chase also regretfully came forward, upset as to having to convict the people who had saved their planet.

"They jumped me, claiming I was the one who had taken his girlfriend." Tifa's captor said. "I don't know what he's talking about, I just heard she was missing yesterday on the news!" The police calmed the man down and assured them he was not a suspect.

After he finished giving his report, the man returned to his cabin where Tifa lay helpless on the bed. He stroked her hair and kissed her cheek before crawling into the bed beside her and falling asleep peacefully, satisfied with himself that he could get away with anything.

They were led out of their cell to be handed over to the local authority. Not one police officer spoke to them, too afraid due to the fact that they were arresting the noblest people on the planet. No one wanted to believe that so much was happening to them, and they would not be seriously punished. They were given the benefit of the doubt, theorized to have just been hallucinating, or jumping to conclusions, after having a mild case of hysteria due to the publicity and the recent loss of two of their members. Still, the law was law and such crime could not go unpunished. The saviors would have to spend another night in a jail cell in Costa del Sol; their sentence lessoned based solely on whom they were.

They were led off the boat without handcuffs, the local authority believing that such people would not try to escape. He was wrong, of course, and was dealt an elbow into his gut. Cloud sent him to the ground and the other members followed in turn; each attacking their guard.

They ran through town, none of the guards bothering to try and stop them, and searched in every building, alleyway, and along the shore, finding nothing. They stopped on the coast to catch their breath and gather their thoughts. Cloud's chest would rise and fall with the tide, almost in unison.

He had lost her. They had come so far, been so close, and now, they had nothing. For all they knew Tifa and her captor could be anywhere by now. Cloud stood up and shook his head to hide the pain he was feeling. Not that it worked however, the rest of the group knew what he was going through.

"Well there are only two options for them." Nanaki spoke up. He hadn't said much the whole journey, and when he did so, everyone turned to him in surprise. "They can either head for North Corel, but the only place for them to run to from there is the Gold Saucer; or they can travel south for Gonganga, which would open up a lot more running space should they be found."

Cloud pondered his words for a moment. Going to Gonganga was the best choice. From there they could head to Cosmo Canyon, then Nibelheim and Rocket Town, just as he and the rest of Avalanche had on their pilgrimage. If that was indeed the path they took, they could follow them easily, but finding them would be nearly impossible.

The lesser of the two evils, perhaps the more inane of the two choices; was to go to North Corel, then travel via air train to the Gold Saucer. Cloud could find no reasoning behind this scenario but figured that that was what the thief would want him to think. He decided to split the group up, half going north, the others heading south.

"Alright, listen up everybody." Cloud said in his usual tone of voice that commanded attention. He was quite an eloquent speaker, and a proven leader, which was why he was naturally pushed into the position he was in, always in charge, always coming up with the plan of action. "We're gonna split up. Reeve, you and Barret come with me. We're going to North Corel. Red, you take Yuffie and Vincent towards Gonganga." He nodded his head in agreement with himself, satisfied with his plan of action. The groups had been divided based on the land. Each person knew their land better than anyone else's and thus would make them more able to search.

The group split up and headed their separate ways, with each group's leaders heading up the pack. Red and his team were headed south, passing the Gold Saucer by nightfall. Both Vincent and Red kept silent for the most part, but Yuffie babbled on about materia and Wutai, stopping only to catch her breath.

"So, like there I was, practicing my totally awesome new ninja moves," the teenager sang while demonstrating one of her moves, "and I looked down into the river and there it was, a gray glowing orb." Red and Vincent had long ago tuned her out but still she chattered on. "I picked it up and looked at it, it wasn't like any materia I had ever seen, it looked like a cross between Meteor and Holy." She chimed.

"Yuffie, there's no way that materia could cross breed, that's not even possible." Red informed her. Yuffie stuck her tongue out at the lion and stuck her hand into her pocket, producing the gray orb. She rolled it around in her hands and gazed into it.

"I'm not stupid!" She droned, "I know materia can't breed!"

"Well then what is it?" Vincent spoke up. Yuffie handed him the orb and he stopped to look at it.

"Just make sure you give it back!" Yuffie cooed, "This party's only big enough for ONE thief!" she grinned and pointed at herself. Vincent continued to stare at the materia and Yuffie walked up behind him and tried to peer over his shoulder. Red stopped, noticing that he was alone, and turned to return to his group.

"I think she's on to something here." Vincent stated, as the orb lit up. "Perhaps when Holy joined Meteor a sort of bonding happened, producing this materia." Red shook his head in disbelief.

"I've never read anything like that before." He said. He looked up at Vincent and Yuffie, then back at the gray stone. "Keep it, maybe we'll find out how it works."

Vincent handed the orb back to Yuffie, who thanked him and returned it to her pocket. They set up camp for the night just outside the desert beneath the Gold Saucer.

It had been so long since the team had been on the road together that they needed to play 'catch up'. After the Lifestream defeated Meteor and Holy the team went their separate ways. Only Cloud and Tifa had remained together, but even they had split up after a few months of living together.

It was sad indeed, when each of them reflected on the time they had spent together, that they should separate as they did. Then again, they couldn't imagine living together forever either; each had their own life; they couldn't go on saving the world after it was already saved.

The next morning Vincent Valentine stretched his arms up over his head, which rested on a rock, and brought them down to feel the slender frame of a young girl laying up against him, her head and left arm resting on his chest. He had always been a sound sleeper, so it was no surprise to him that he hadn't noticed when she came to him, but he was surprised by the fact that she had. He raised himself up to a sitting position, her head rolling down into his lap and stirring her. She gasped and quickly sat up, embarrassed.

"Yuffie?" Vincent asked her as she shook her head in disbelief.

"Sorry, I got uncomfortable!" She snarled as if it was his fault. Vincent just shook his head and got up, brushing himself off.

"If you two love birds are done I'd like to go find Tifa, if that's alright with you." Nanaki stated, heading towards Gonganga. Vincent growled and Yuffie threw a rock at the lion. He roared and chased after her, the small group nearly forgetting their intended purpose.

Neither Vincent nor Yuffie had ever been to Gonganga, and it had been quite awhile for Red as well. He was surprised to see that it too had become a working city. Crews had worked around the clock to rebuild the reactor into a safe, usable resource of electricity. The business had created many new jobs and in turn people from the Midgar slums flocked there for the cheap living costs.

They split up to search the town. Red walked through the housing district, seeing a few familiar faces near the graveyard. He stopped to watch the people mourn, and in his gut he felt that he would soon have to do so once again.

He didn't want to be pessimistic, but he was beginning to think that even if they did find and save Tifa, she would not be able to live for very long without some serious medical attention. The man he had seen on the boat did not look capable of torturing a woman and yet still, there was something about him that alluded to possible insanity.

He could very well be one of those quiet killers; a person who has no identity, a hermit, who commits murder and is never caught because no one would ever suspect him. Red cleared the thought from his furry head and continued on towards the reactor.

Vincent had chosen to look through the business district, reasoning that the kidnapper would probably need supplies by now. With his gun in its holster the vampire walked down the streets, being careful not to overlook any spec of land. He could hear the whirl of the fan that cooled the reactor off in the distance, and looked out towards it.

Shinra had nearly destroyed the planet by sucking out most of the Mako. Now here they were, a year later, rebuilding the machine that had threatened them not too long ago. The original inhabitants of Gonganga moved to strike against the rebuild, but the overwhelming abundance of Midgar refugees had won their argument. Vincent continued on in the direction of the machine; where he and the other two were supposed to meet.

Yuffie made her way through the billowing smoke of the industrial section of town. Great pillars rose into the sky, polluting it with contaminants. It seemed as though nearly every town from the old days was becoming a city, doomed to the path to become another Midgar. Why she had gotten stuck in this stuffy part of town was beyond her, but this alone time did give her an opening to reflect, and the others some peace and quiet.

"Teef!" She called, knowing she would receive no answer.

The smoke that filled the air frightened her, and she quickened her step to get to the reactor as soon as possible. She really missed Tifa, even though she hadn't spoken to her since her and Cloud were dropped off from the Highwind in Kalm town. But she had to admit that her mind hadn't truly been set on finding her old friend since she had gotten the call on her unused PHS. The device had sat in a drawer in her dresser for the past year, collecting dust. Yuffie contemplated shutting it off but thought better of it; she never knew when the team would want her.

No, her mind had been elsewhere the whole journey. A throbbing in her heart had transpired to her mind and ate away at her emotions constantly. He was just so damn mysterious and she didn't know how she could ever make him realize she existed. Vincent was unlike any man she had ever met and the enigma that surrounded him had drawn her to him.

She wanted to know everything about him; wanted him to open up to her like he would no other. Above all she wanted to have what Tifa had: a man that would come rescue her at the drop of a hat. Not that she could ever see herself getting into a situation like this; ever being the object of some sick bastard's fantasy like Tifa. She was not unattractive, but she knew what men wanted; men wanted Tifa, big, beautiful, loving Tifa. She had always taken notice of the relationship that Tifa and Cloud shared during their first journey together and could only admit that she was jealous. She wanted that love they shared, unspoken but so very obvious.

She looked up from her dream world to see Vincent and Red in front of her, waiting by the reactor. She looked at them with a knowing look and felt what they all felt.

"No luck?" Red asked her, and she shook her head. The three each let out a long sigh and headed out of town.

"Guess it's on to Cosmo Canyon." Yuffie chirped. She wanted to find Tifa first and foremost, but a little more time near Vincent was not a bad thing. She smiled to herself as they continued toward the mountains. It was not but ten minutes later when Vincent's PHS began to ring. He answered it in excitement for this could be the big one, the news they had been waiting for, his only hope would be that it was good news.

"Hello?" He spoke, and then turned to Yuffie and Red, "It's Cloud." He listened to what the man on the other end had to say until his face turned solemn. Yuffie and Red looked at each other in acknowledgement, each one knowing what Vincent's expression represented, though they had prayed otherwise.

* * *

He had left Costa del Sol fearing the worst. He of course wanted to lead in the direction that he thought would most likely be traveled by Tifa and her captor. He wasn't sure just why, but for some reason he felt like they had gone to North Corel.

They had just left the peninsula when the first signs of the sunset were seen. He knew that he should rest and gain his strength but he couldn't live with himself knowing that he had been so close once again; and again had lost her.

Failure seemed to be stamped on his forehead in big bold print for all to see. Twice now he had failed in his attempt to rescue his love, and that was two times too many for his standards. With the way things were going he felt in his own mind that Tifa had a better chance of escaping on her own than him finding her

They traveled early into the morning until finally collapsing from exhaustion. It was Barret who awakened the slumbering hero the next morning, alerting him to the overhead train car that had just left the Corel station. Cloud looked up at the suspended box and shook his fist at it.

"I'll get you, you bastard!" He yelled, and jumped up to continue towards North Corel.

Reeve had to run to catch up, being far out of shape since he had never needed to be up close and personal with the team before. True Cait Sith wasn't that much faster, but it was much simpler to control a puppet than to run a marathon. They entered Barret's city by noon, with Reeve trailing behind, fighting to catch his breath.

"Damn man, I coulda just stayed home an' cut them off!" Barret exclaimed, though he didn't blame Cloud for anything. Looking back on something always gave way to interpretation, but Barret knew that if he had been in Cloud's shoes things wouldn't have turned out half as well as they did. Not that it was saying much.

Corel was coming along nicely Cloud thought. Instead of a dirt-lined track there were roads; instead of tents there were houses. Barret had brought the city together and definitely paved the way for a new era.

The city had grown too, as had most of the world after the fall of the mighty Shinra. Their demise had scattered the people of Midgar, both rich and poor, all around the world; yet Corel had remained one of the few places to receive any refugees. They had grown based on the economy; with the downfall of Shinra, people felt safe and free once again, and retired to living life in extremes, rather than fear the end of the world yet sit back and let it die. Children were being born left and right and new businesses were popping up everywhere; it seemed everyone wanted a piece of the pie.

The cable car station had received a new look under Barret's new plans as well. No longer looking like it was at the brink of disaster, it was now a fully functioning gondola service. Several new cars were purchased, as well as brand new cable and wiring, giving it an updated look.

The people of the city were surprised to see Barret with the pack again. They had all assumed that his days of fighting evil were over and that he would take on the roll of full-time mayor. He couldn't blame them for the expressions on their confused faces, hell, he would be confused too if he were them. He had never expected anything more to go wrong in his life. He never expected that a new threat to him and all his friends could appear in the shape of some wiseass little prick.

For some reason he and his friends never seemed to have good luck. It was as if lady luck, dressed in all her splendor, had descended the heavens to join them in their quest, spitting on them all the, way.

For him he had suffered through many losses, as they all had. He lost his wife, Aeris, Cid, and now his best friend Tifa. Tifa and he had known each other for years, since she was about eighteen. She had been living in the slums of Midgar for about a year when he first entered the bar she worked at. A little young to legally work there, the owner had cut her some slack based on her looks. She had nowhere else to go and no work experience so she was forced to take the job.

That man taught her to mix drinks and tidy up the bar. After his wife had died Barret had moved to the slums with his two-year-old daughter Marlene. He had met Tifa one night on his way home from work, things weren't going so well and he needed just one drink. He got to know Tifa and even invited her over, as friends. Marlene instantly fell in love with the gorgeous brunette and was even babysat by her on many occasions.

Barret began to fight for the planet, which intrigued Tifa but it wasn't until late one night when the owner of the bar she worked at tried to rape her that she left her job and moved in with Barret. Though many people talked, the two could only see each other as friends, nothing else.

About a year later Tifa took all of her savings and purchased a small building that would become Tifa's 7th Heaven, a place in the slums where the working class could sit and forget their problems, and where she and Barret, along with their new followers Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie, could meet and plan their attacks.

During their quest to save the planet nothing had gone right either. Aeris died, they nearly lost Cloud, he and Tifa almost lost their lives, and Holy and Meteor reacted in such a way that was unpredictable. They just couldn't seem to catch a break.

He could tell Cloud was suffering too. Aside from feeling inadequate the blue-eyed kid was really going through something surreal. He had lost Aeris and to lose Tifa would just about kill him. If something was to ever go right in their lives, it should have to be now, he thought.

Reeve watched silently in the background as Barret entered his house and found his daughter, now nearly six and full of the same exuberance she had had during the planet crisis. The little girl ran and jumped into her father's strong arms, who in turn lifted her off the ground and swung her up onto his broad shoulder.

"Daddy's gonna have to go away fo' a lil' while sweetheart." He told his daughter, who wrapped her arms around his thick neck and begged him not to leave.

"You're always working, no time for me!" she pouted. Barret got down on one knee and Marlene jumped off his shoulder and turned her back to him coldly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"This in't daddy's normal work Marlene. This is for auntie Tifa." Marlene turned around and nodded in acknowledgement. Barret outstretched his arms and the little girl accepted, running to him and trying to wrap her short little arms around his bulky frame. Barret stood up and said good-bye, then turned and left his house.

Reeve wanted a family. He wanted the compassion that Cloud felt for Tifa and Barret felt for Marlene. He wanted to love and be loved; he just didn't know what to do. He was out of a job, relying on his pension from Shinra, which was nearly depleted, to get by. What woman would want a man who couldn't support himself?

After leaving Barret's house the three boarded the cable car and headed for the Gold Saucer amusement park.


End file.
